Marc:

I was born into a “Christian” cultural environment. Although my parents were not regulars at church, they still sent me to a children's church school weekly. I remember enjoying learning the stories of the bible.

However, by the time I was a teenager, I was taught about the incompatibility between religion and science. I decided to move away from church doubting its relevance in a modern world and I focused on understanding the world through the lenses of evolution theory. I adopted a skeptical, philosophical approach to life and its meaning.

In spite of this, I always had many unanswered questions and a yearning for more. I wanted more meaning, and something I would describe as “a spiritual connection”. But I could not find it, and I lived with a deep sense of emptiness and frustration throughout my life.

Then when I met the woman who would become my wife, she told me she was a Christian and started sharing about her faith. Initially, I told her that I was not interested in any specific religion but following her persistent offers, I eventually attended a service. I was struck by the atmosphere of happiness and the depth of the sermon preached on that Sunday. While I was expecting the pastor to tell fairy tales easily debunked by science, his message actually spoke to me at both an intellectual and emotional level. It was then I decided to attend more and explore further.

Around that time I was struck with the terrible news my father was diagnosed with cancer. As I helplessly watched him suffer, I was desperate for solutions and I hope and prayed relentlessly for a miracle. But no miracle came and sadly my father passed away. I was deeply hurt by the loss of my father, but strangely something had changed inside me. I decided not to abandon my spiritual journey, but continue seeking Christ.

I finally accepted Christ into my life, and I’ve seen God transform me into a better person in every way, more accepting, patient, kind, and so on. I have ensured to base my life and work on strong Christian values. I am happier with my life now and I thank God for blessing me and my wife with our wonderful son. We named him Theophile, which means “one who loves God.”