Hi, my name is Alice and I'm a senior at UCI and this is my testimony. My parents began going to an apostolic denomination church when I was little. Then as I grew up, we went to a Baptist denomination church after they found out there was a deaf church congregation there.

After a few years of being there, we returned to the apostolic church. In the midst of transitioning back and forth between churches, I never took my faith seriously. Instead, I viewed church as a place that I was forced to go to. As I grew up, I continued to be a nominal Christian.

I would only read scripture on Sundays because of sermons. I never really saw a point in reading my Bible. It was just a book that I had to carry with me on Sundays to church. My prayers would only happen at church and consisted of either apologies for "bad things" I did or asking for things I wanted.

I saw Jesus as a genie that could grant me the desires of my heart. During my senior year of high school, I began to face very difficult experiences. That year, I fell into deep depression and anxiety after experiencing conflicts with a close friend of mine at the time. I sinfully put all my worth in my friendship with her and it slowly broke me down.

After a year of struggling with my mental health, I wanted to leave my hometown of San Francisco for college. With only three options and only one being in Southern California, I opted for Whittier College. I thought this was my way to get a fresh start. During my first year of college, I continued to struggle with depression and anxiety.

I placed my identity in friendships and held other people above God. I thought meeting new people would fulfill my needs but quickly realized it did not. At the same time that year, God placed a desire in me to grow in my faith, so I wanted to find a church that I could attend.

I stumbled upon a friend of a friend's Facebook page and on there, I found YouTube videos of her college experience. In those videos, she documented her time at Berean, attending car rallies, sports day, and so on. I really wanted to go but I had no means of transportation. I ended up finding a church closer to me that I could attend.

It was there that I began to learn more about God. I was still living for the world as I had a shallow understanding of God. After my first year of college, I returned home to San Francisco to attend community college. That small desire to grow the year before disappeared after I came home.

I became more focused on transitioning to my new school. I never felt a genuine connection when I went to church growing up and being at home was a reminder of that. I decided to stop attending church completely that year as it seemed pointless to go. In November of 2018, I applied to transfer from community college and was accepted into UCI.

I accepted the offer and came down to Irvine during September of 2019. Before coming, I remembered those YouTube videos and from that, I knew I wanted to at least visit Berean. When I first started attending at the beginning of my junior year, God opened my eyes to see his holiness and convicted me of the truth of who I am.

I began to see my true nature as a sinner before a perfect God. I was on the path to hell, but God, in his rich grace and mercy, sent his one and only son Jesus to die on the cross for my sins so I can be reconciled with the Father.

My college experience has been anything but smooth. Yet, as I look back, I see how sovereign God was working through these events to lead me closer to him. I needed to go through those times to see that I need Christ every single day of my life. Even though I still struggle with sin, I am thankful to God because I am no longer a slave to sin.

It is through his great mercy and sweet grace that I am able to pursue holiness in him. As I continue to live my life, I recognize how much my life is not my own but belongs to God. As Galatians 2.20 says, "I have been crucified with Christ and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me.

And the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself up for me." Thank you. (Applause) >> I would like to introduce our next speaker. (Applause)