(The following post was originally written as an essay for admissions to Wesley Seminary. The point being to give a quick look into the testimony of my life. A few changes have been made to make it blog-ready. I hope you enjoy.)
One of my favorite things about being a father is the complete faith my children place in me. They know I am their father, they know I love them, and they know how special they are to me. I have demonstrated this to them through my words, my hugs, and my actions throughout their lives. So moments come where they trustfully place their safety in my hands. While my son has reckless desires, even my daughter, who is sometimes shy and all the time cautious, loves to find moments to fling herself off a high surface into my arms. She knows her hope lies in me and her faith says that I’ll catch her. And catch her I do.
From an early age, I learned that life was best when my faith and trust were placed in God. I am the son of a Wesleyan pastor and grew up at the Port Ann Wesleyan Church in central Pennsylvania. Like most kids growing up in church, I can remember multiple moments of decision in my relationship with Jesus Christ. They happened as early as age five, were brought about through many experiences including camp meetings and movies about the rapture (there is this scene with a guillotine that still haunts me…), and came to maturity through my final years of youth camp.
While all of these moments hold value to me, the experience that truly cemented my faith and certainty in Jesus Christ came through the life and walk of my mother. When I was around 10 years old my family was informed that my mother had breast cancer, and that it was severe. In fact, we were told that she had little time to live – doctors were expecting three months. As my mother began chemotherapy, with no where else to find help, we all turned to prayer. I can still clearly remember lying in bed at night begging God to save my mom. And He did.
To the amazement of the doctors, God saved my mother. She won her first battle with cancer and then throughout the next 8-9 years she would do the impossible and win again and again, as the cancer would appear in new parts of her body only to be defeated. I cannot tell you in words what an experience like this can do for the faith of a young Christian. But I can say that I learned to again and again throw myself towards God’s arms knowing and believing that He would catch me.
My mother’s impact on my life doesn’t stop here. See, it wasn’t just that she defeated cancer. Her continual dependance on God, her strive to seek His will and follow Him, and her dedication to spiritual growth and development of character was incredible! She was, and still is, everything I want to be as a Christian – loving, humble, and so filled with hope. It wasn’t until my freshman year of college that I found out the depth of her love. As I often prayed for God to save my mother, she prayed to simply live long enough to see her last child, me, raised and off to college. It is almost too perfect that when she did go home to heaven it was after twice visiting me at Houghton College and seeing that her prayers were answered.
Matthew 18:3 (NIV) – And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”
In Matthew 18, I believe Christ isn’t talking about simply believing like a child, but having the humility of a child. Saying to God not only do I trust you, God, but my life is Yours, do with it as You will. May Your will be done with my life. That has been my goal, to continually throw myself into God’s arms and to allow Him to do with my life as He sees fit. As is always the case with God, He has taken me to places that I never expected. It is through God’s hand that I went to Houghton College debt free. At Houghton and without my understanding, God gave me opportunities to serve that provided leadership and creative ministry experience that I would use in years to come (like dressing in a kilt and leading a team of young men in obnoxious cheers…seriously).
After Houghton, God guided me to the first job I applied to, being the Assistant/Youth Pastor at Pine Grove Wesleyan Church. At no point in my life had I felt a specific call to youth ministry, yet I quickly found that God had given me the gifts and graces to excel. In one year’s time, feeling like I couldn’t possibly be the best candidate, I was asked to become the District Youth President for the Penn-Jersey District. What a blessing this opportunity has been! In 2008, God guided me to Bethany Wesleyan Church. Here at Bethany, I serve as the Pastor of Family Ministries, overseeing ministries from Nursery to Young Adults. Children’s Ministry, Youth Ministry, Young Adult Ministry – of all my time at Houghton, I never once took a specific class in any of them. But God has opened these doors for me to serve in life and as long as that is the case – His will be done.
I am 32 years old and I know that another step of faith is coming. As has been the story of my life, I want to be prepared for whatever faith step God brings my way. When that step comes, I don’t want to just be ready to take that step, I want to confidently leap forward into God’s arms and everything He has in store! I know there will be moments of doubt and uncertainty ahead. But if I have learned one thing from my life it is this – life is best when my faith and trust are placed in God.
justinleininger.com 
Your mother was very lucky to have been blessed to have you as a son, God has great plans for you!