by Alisha Renee

I had never known despair like I did that night as I lay flat on my face before God, pleading for Him to spare the life of a loved one who had expressed dark thoughts of taking their own. I was helpless. And I was a million miles away. At least it felt like it. Where was God in that moment when hope eluded me? Right there… with me.

by Alisha Renee

‘I’m never going to be a teacher.’

Famous last words. So how did I end up in a classroom when it was the last profession on earth I wanted to be in? Simple. My heavenly Father knows me, far better than I know myself.

by Alisha Renee

I think one of the bravest things we can do is love people. I honestly do. People can be scary! They can be unpredictable, and they can hurt us. Who hasn’t known the sting of betrayal, the stab of rejection, or the slap of misjudgement?…Love can hurt, deeply. But it can also heal, powerfully.

by Erica (25)

In 2019, after almost three years of dating, my then fiancé, Marinus, and I got engaged. It was a very exciting time, right out of COVID lockdown…But as the year went on, and COVID continued, it became more and more apparent that guests from Australia would not be able to attend the wedding.

by Alisha Renee

I was seething. How could anyone be so rude? So discourteous? And in church! My righteous indignation was at its peak. And then, a gentle insight from my dad stilled the surge of my rising rage. Judgement retreated like a receding tide, leaving behind a treasure of wisdom on the shores of my heart—we only see in part.

by Amelie (13)

It was a beautiful day on the water, and the Hector’s dolphins of Lyttleton followed us around the bay.

That was where God found me.

by Alisha Renee

“Where do you think they’ll be in 10 years?”

“Not where they think they’ll be.”

My husband had leaned in to ask this question at our friend’s wedding. I didn’t mean for my answer to sound cynical, I was simply speaking what I now know to be true: Life doesn’t always turn out how we imagine it will.

by Alice (24)

Whether we find joy in words, maths equations, cooking, woodwork, conversation or travel, God gave us these gifts and talents to use and enjoy. He loves when we take wholesome joy in the things He has blessed us with…

by Alisha Renee

When I was 29, I lost my dad. He was helping to build an orphanage in Thailand when he had a heart attack and died. I loved my dad. Nothing can ever prepare you for the moment when you hear the words, ‘He passed away.’

by Amelia (15)

From the beginning of 2017 until the end of 2019 I was just surviving. Having unhealthy friendships throughout school, being bullied, and having my mum sick for eight years all had a significant impact on me. But it wasn’t until Year 7 that my life took a difficult turn. 

by Mel (30)

[…] subconsciously, I began to believe that if I couldn’t receive the attention I craved from my father, then I could find it in boys instead. At the age of 17 I wound up pregnant to my boyfriend. My parents were horrified to learn of my pregnancy.

by Becky (15)

After we moved, I tried to start each day with determination, a broad smile, and a positive attitude, all in an attempt to hide the heaviness of feeling like I didn’t belong. As hard as I tried to be happy, by the end of the day I was exhausted from trying to fit in.

by Genevieve (59)

Before I invited Jesus into my life, I was held hostage by the deeply entrenched belief that I was unworthy. I grew up believing I wasn't good enough. Nothing I did seemed to please my parents. I felt myself deflating like a balloon. I thought if my own parents can’t love me, what hope is there for me?

by Sarah (15)

I always assumed that everyone was a Christian and had the same beliefs as me... until I started at a non-Christian school in Year 7. It was weird. I had friends who weren’t Christian for the first time. This new way of life had me floating slowly away from God as I tried to fit in.

by Lois (13)

I grew up always believing what my parents and my teachers told me. Well, everything except for what they said about this strange unconditional love of God; how God loved me a lot, how God thought I was the best me I could be, and how everyone was somehow equal in His eyes. I wondered how that could ever be possible.

by Alisha Renee

I was still a teenager when I got married, just 19 years old. In my blissful state of being chosen over others by my husband to be his wife, I naively thought this would somehow work a miracle on my self-worth. It didn’t. I still had my demons of comparison and low self-esteem to fight.

By Rachel (14)

Lonely. Unsupported. Ignored. Nothingness. Worried. These five words best describe what I experienced most during 2019. If I had to string them all together and choose one word to sum up my year, it would be ‘brokenness.’

by Alisha Renee

Mum emerged from the room, holding the card, with tears in her eyes. I’d never seen my mum cry. There was a softness about her, and she spoke words I will never forget…

by Zoe (17)

I am a huge procrastinator. Pointlessly scrolling through social media, binge watching Netflix, and baking way too much used to take up most of my time. Yet, even as I continually chose these activities over spending time with people or God, there was an ache in my heart that longed for change.

by Hannah (27)

I grew up with bedtime prayers. It began with my parents leading the prayers, and slowly I learned to speak to God in my own time too. As I grew older, I started to doubt whether God really answered prayer. It was easy to look at the world and feel like maybe He only answered some.