"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" -Romans 3:23 (NASB)
I grew up in a Christian family, was taught the gospel at the very young age, attended a Lutheran elementary school, and attended Sunday school every week. I understood that we are all sinners, deserving of hell and eternal punishment. I knew that Jesus Christ, God's one and only Son, died on the cross for the atonement of my sins, and conquered sin through His resurrection. Although I knew all of these things, I admit that I lived a very "Christian" life because it was easy to do so in my very sheltered environment. I was never challenged to stand up for my faith and it was rarely convenient to act contrary to what I knew was right.
I attended an independent, secular high school. Here was where I realized the difference between the life of a Christian and that of a non-Christian. It was a place where everyone was relatively tolerant of everyone else's views, values, and beliefs, and seldom did I feel an urge to make it known that I was Christian. I had my beliefs, and everyone else had their own. At this point, my priorities were very focused around succeeding in school, having fun with friends, and getting into the college of my choice, UC Berkeley. It was a great school, and I wanted to stay close to home. I was almost completely sure that I would be going there the following year as my stats pretty much matched those represented by the previously accepted class. However, as March came, I was devastated. I was devastated because things didn't work out as I had anticipated, and now, making the decision to attend UCLA instead, there would be a mess of uncertainties to come.
