The Bible encourages each of us not to let anyone look down on us because we are young, but to set an example “in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, and in purity.” University student Anthony Beltran believed God for the salvation of his family. Read more to discover how God answered his prayer.

 

Before I had a relationship with Jesus, I had many different kinds of relationships with different groups of people. I desperately wanted to belong. That’s because I wanted to look for a group of people I could call a family.

I wasn’t close to my family at all. My siblings and I were insecure, and so, because we envied each other, we often fought and competed against one another. My dad and I hardly talked. Sure, my mom took care of us, but there was still something lacking. I guess you could say there was an uncomfortable tension in our family.

One day, a cousin invited my siblings and me to youth service in Victory Malate. It was at a series called “Weird Love,” and I instantly liked it there because I didn’t think such a place existed. Being a musician, I really enjoyed the music they played, plus I learned something new about God. That’s where everything started, basically.

I got invited to a Victory group. I got discipled. I volunteered in the Music ministry. I met new friends who were a good influence to me. God put me in a really good place, and my life began to change. It was not my doing at all, but His.

All this time, I was praying for my family members. I held on to God’s promise in Hebrews 11:1 that says, “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” I knew God would save my entire family. I trusted He would fulfill this promise, and did not give up in praying for them.

After much prayer and persistent invitations, my parents joined my siblings and me at church. They were eventually plugged into a Victory group, and were both water baptized last May.

We’re not just active churchgoers now. From being insecure and competitive against each other, my siblings and I are now more open with each other. My dad and I talk now, and we talk about God’s Word. There’s so much more joy in my mom, too. Because of Jesus, the tensions in our home have dissolved. And we know that He is at the center of our family.

It is by faith that Jesus saved me, transformed me, gave me a spiritual family, and now saved my family. It’s not the things I did or even how faithful I was. It’s all Him. And truly, there is nothing impossible with God.