Growing up, I knew about God and believed in Him. I originally grew up Catholic, went to Catholic school, and even served as a teen minister for a Catholic Teens retreat. I am thankful for that time of my life, and my first encounter with the Lord's presence in a tangible way was at 17 when I visited one of those teen's retreat. I remember experiencing Him tangibly during something called adoration, which is a time of meditation on the Lord's presence within the Catholic religion. I could not stop crying uncontrollably, and I remember weeping in His presence. I felt His love, healing, peace, and all that He was around me that day. Although I knew of God and experienced Him some, I did not know Him to the fullest measure until a few years later.

 

Fast forward to a few years later, my husband and I met on March 11, 2011 at a night lounge scene in San Antonio, Tx. during my freshman year of college. We fell in love right away, but we lived a worldly lifestyle and a life of sin together for one whole year. Despite us meeting in a worldly scene, I know for a fact that God orchestrated that night and led us to each other, because eventually after meeting him, I found the Lord in a way I had not ever known Him prior before.

 

Side note: My husband was originally saved as a teen and grew up in Church. He received prophetic words that he would be a preacher some day, and his mom even laid hands on her children when they were younger and prayed that one of them would be a preacher!

 

At the time we met, my mother in law was the only one saved and living for Jesus in her whole family. 

 

She said she cried out every day for her family to be saved, and one day the Lord finally told her, “Calvin (my husband) will be first.” When she heard about me she would pray for us every day and she would invite us to Church every Sunday. We would have excuses each weekend for one whole year, until one day on a Saturday Calvin told me that we were going to Church in the morning. He said, “I told my Mom we would finally go to Church tomorrow, so we can’t go out tonight because then we won’t wake up early in the morning.” We usually went out every Saturday, but I agreed to stay in and had no idea the next day was going to change my life forever.

 

It was exactly one year later from the day that we met, March 11, 2012, that we woke up early to get ready for Church. I still remember my husband's mood that morning. He was very quiet, sober, and serious. Unlike me, he grew in Church in a different way, and he understood the price that comes with surrendering all to Jesus in a way that I had not quite known yet, but was about to find out! I remember his mood being serious and me just feeling the need to also not talk or say anything. That morning, we arrived at Church, and heard a sermon that was life-changing. The preacher began to talk all about Jesus and what He did for us on the cross. I had never heard Jesus preached in this way before... He talked about how Jesus did not die for us so that we could continue to stay in sin and remain the same, but He died for us and has created a way for us through grace to be set FREE from sin. All I felt as he preached was conviction and a desperate need for the Lord. I told the Lord in my head, “God I did not know any of this before.”

 

The service was coming to an end, and at the end the Pastor asked if anyone would like to give their lives to Jesus and receive salvation. I knew right away that I needed to do this and that I wanted to know Him more and have Him more in my life; I immediately raised my hand.

 

Another side note: I had NO idea at the time, but my husband actually told me later that he knew the Pastor was going to ask if we wanted to give our lives to Christ at the end of service and he understood fully what it meant to live for Christ and give up our old way of living. He told me that while the Pastor was preaching that he had made a covenant with God and said, “God I will give my life to you today at the end of this service. If she does not stand up at the end too, I will break up with her today. Even if she hesitates or just stands up after she sees me stand up. However, if she stands up with me, I will know that she is my wife, and I will marry her.” (Crazy right!?)

 

As soon as the Pastor asked those who raised their hand to be saved to stand up, I stood immediately. I had completely forgotten my then boyfriend, who is my now husband was even sitting next to me. In fact, I felt like I was alone in the room with the Man of God and Jesus. We both walked up to the altar and surrendered our lives fully to the Lord that day. God truly saved and transformed our lives in that moment, and from that day we were delivered from one day to the next completely from every worldly desire that we had previously and our lives were never the same!

 

That weekend we attended an encounter weekend retreat which is where we learned more about Jesus and received the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Since then we have pursued revival together, attended Ministry School, served in our local church as Children's Church Leaders, and then as licensed and ordained Pastors. We have also planted a Church together and have traveled to help with other Church-plants.

 

Our lives were never the same that day, and we have been living on fire for God ever since He first saved us.

 

I owe my whole life to Jesus! I've witnessed amazing things that He is done in my life and in the life of so many others.  I believe that I am called to share His love and light in some way to you, and pray that I can do that through my life and the different resources that I offer!

 

I pray God encounters your life too and that you would know Him in a personal way. Not in a religious way, but in a personal and intimate way in Jesus' name! Amen.

 

With Love, Sonja Garcia