Manny Mendez

My life before Christ was my Lord and Savior was filled with emptiness, chaos and riddled with aimless ambitions. My early life was the epitome of instability, from being in and out of foster care and having a parent battling with addiction. For a long time, I was angry with God because of this. It wasn’t until last year, April 17th 2024, that I declared Jesus Christ as my Lord. It was all because I was introduced to a lovely couple, The Nahas’, here at GBC by my good friend, coworker and sister in Christ Jay Sanchez. It was thanks to these individuals, that God most certainly put in my path, that I was able to reconnect with The Spirit and take my rightful place within Christ’s family. I was able to see God moving in my life and these beloved people comforted me and accepted me despite my past. No longer was I shameful about my return to Christ. When I dedicated myself that day, the scripture I claimed to do so was “The Lord’s Prayer and the portion of that prayer that spoke to me most was Matthew 6:11-13 —“Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors.” I was no longer angry with what my circumstances were, now I lead my life with confidence and appreciation. I have amazing fellowship and community. I no longer get discouraged when things don’t go as I plan because the Lord has plans for me that I couldn’t yet fathom.