I was raised in a Christian family in South Korea. As a child, however, my faith was mostly cultural. There was little connection between my church life and my personal life, and I mostly considered myself a "Sunday Christian." My first personal encounter with Jesus was during middle school. One night, while staying up late studying for an exam, I was overwhelmed by stress, fear of failure, and concern about what others would think of me. Looking for any excuse to avoid studying, I picked up my Bible and began reading the book of Romans. I started from chapter one, and surprisingly, I could not stop reading. Then I came to Romans 8:38–39: "For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." The realization of unfailing love of God touched my heart so deeply that I burst into tears. Until then, I had thought that I was the one choosing to believe in God. But in that moment, I understood that God was the One who had initiated this relationship, who was faithfully sustaining it, and who would never give up on me. That night marked the beginning of my personal relationship with Jesus Christ. When I entered college, I was baptized and confessed that the Lord is my Shepherd, the One who leads me on the right path. Soon afterward, I experienced what that truly meant. During my junior year, I became overwhelmed by many responsibilities: serving as the alto section leader in the choir, leading class projects, and participating in a discipleship program at a church in my hometown. Every week, I traveled nearly six hours round trip to attend the program, which also involved extensive Bible reading and assignments. One night, I wrote down more than twenty tasks on my to-do list. Feeling anxious and exhausted, I prayed, "Lord, please trim down my workload so that it becomes manageable." Deep down, I had already decided how God should answer my prayer: by leading me to step away from the discipleship program. The next morning, I accidentally slipped on the stairs outside my dorm room and dislocated my right shoulder. As the recovery took about eight weeks, I had no choice but to take a leave of absence from school. Ironically, the only commitment I could continue was the discipleship program. God had answered my prayer—but in a way I never expected. That leave of absence led me to prepare for graduate school in the United States. And as a part of it, I attended UC Berkeley’s summer session, where I met my future husband. What had seemed like a terrible interruption became one of God's blessings. I learned that God’s wisdom is far greater than mine. During graduate school, Bible study with friends from my local church led me into another season of spiritual growth. First, I came to understand how much of a sinner I am. Although I appeared to be a "good" person—avoiding conflict, following rules, and trying to please others—I realized that much of this was because I had been protected by a stable and supportive environment. When I confronted my own sinful nature, I saw that I was capable of committing the very sins I had judged in others if I were placed in their circumstances. This humbled me and led me to repentance. Second, I came to truly believe that eternal life is real. I once thought of heaven simply as a place where my soul would go after death. But I came to understand the Christian hope more fully: through Jesus Christ, death is not the end, and God promises eternal life with Jesus Christ. Once I believed eternity was real, everything else was reevaluated. The things I once feared and obsessed over became small and temporary compared to what lasts forever. Life continued to bring unexpected challenges—health problems, financial difficulties, and hardships within and outside my family. Yet whenever I called on the name of Jesus, sometimes with nothing more than a desperate cry, He answered in ways I could never have imagined, by reminding me of a Bible verse, sending exactly the right person at just the right time, and even through content I came across on the internet. He always reminded me that He is present and faithful. Through all these experiences, I have become convinced that Jesus is the true source of joy, comfort, and security. Over and over, I have found Jesus' words to be true: "So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' ... For your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well" (Matthew 6:31–33).