Life is too boring! Susana thought as she walked home from school one sunny afternoon in Puruándiro. My parents never let me do anything.
She began to think wistfully of her friends and all the things they had that she didn’t. If I only had a phone, a boyfriend, and new clothes, then I’d be happy! She decided.
At fourteen years of age, Susana had always been a nice girl. She was obedient and didn’t do the crazy things many did at that age.
As the years went by her heart grew more and more discontent. She longed for happiness. She needed more fun, something to satisfy her empty soul.
And so, Susana’s pursuit for happiness began.
When she entered high school, Susana decided that now she would take advantage and do all the things she hadn’t been allowed to do before. Now she would be happy! She gained a circle of friends that she constantly hung out with. She chose them over her own family. At home her parents would just fight. With her friends Susana felt complete. They would party. Partying led to drinking. Drinking led to wildness. It was all so fun and exciting.
“What!! How could you? No!” Susana slammed the door behind her as her parents yelled after her, “Susana! Come back here! Now!”
She ignored them and stormed out of the house. She couldn’t believe it.
Her father had just told her that he was moving her and her sister Silvia to Panindícuaro, a town several miles away. Miles away from her friends and everything that made her happy.
Her parents had decided that their daughters’ wildness had gotten out of hand. They needed to be distanced from this bad company that was influencing them.
A few weeks later, in spite of their protests, Susana and Silvia were left alone in a rented house in the remote town, away from parties and friends.
Everything seemed so empty and meaningless now. Overwhelming loneliness and depression took over. She would never be happy like this.
It had all slipped so quickly through her fingers. Was anything in this life guaranteed?
Susana’s family was Catholic, though they never really went to Mass. Susana had heard about God and the Bible. That very year, she had taken a Bible study from her best friend’s aunt, who was a believer in Jesus. They had invited her to a youth camp once too. She had gone, but she didn’t like it, and the truth was, none of this “religious stuff” interested her.
BUT THEN CAME JESUS…
This summer Susana was dying of boredom. When they invited her to the youth camp again, she and Silvia agreed to go. What else did they have to do in this backwater town, with no friends to hang out with?
This camp was different. The teachings, the testimonies–they all seemed to make more sense now. They were actually impacting. Susana longed for the happiness she saw in these young people. It wasn’t the kind of happiness she had found in her friends. It was something that ran deeper. She understood that to get this peace and happiness, she had to trust in Jesus Christ to forgive her of her sins. She knew very well that she was a sinner. She had sinned so much these past years. Too much. She supposed God couldn’t forgive her. She wasn’t good, like these people were. She had done way worse things than any of them. God could forgive them, but not her. But then other young people stood up to give their testimonies, youth like her. Some of them said they had been wild, rebellious, or drunkards. This gave her hope that she could be saved like them and be happy. But would it really work? Would she be happy?
She couldn’t leave her friends, her life. They were all she had. The teaching that helped change her perspective was given by a gringo, Nate Persson. He was good at telling stories. And he told a story in a particular teaching that struck Susana and really made her think.
“There once was a young girl that lived alone with her father. They were very poor. Her father had to work all day in the coal mines to provide for her. The little girl had never owned anything valuable. But one special day her father came home with a present for her. The little girl was so excited. He drew from his pocket a string of plastic pearls. Oh, the joy! They were so pretty! The prettiest thing the girl had ever had. She squealed in delight and held the pearls tightly in her hand. She held them up to the firelight to watch them gleam. How happy she was! Gazing lovingly at her, her father asked, “My daughter, do you trust me?”
Still in awe of the pearls in her hand, she nodded.
“Then throw those pearls in the fire.”
The girl’s head jerked up in shock. What? Throw away this precious gift?
“Father, no! I can’t throw these away! They’re all I have!”
“Trust me, my daughter. Throw them in the fire.”
Struggling to understand, she looked questioningly at her father. Could he really mean it? She had always trusted him. But this? This seemed too hard to do! She didn’t want to let go. But finally, she decided to trust and obey her father. With a trembling hand she tossed the precious plastic pearls into the fire.
Smiling, her father put his hand in his pocket. “Daughter, I have something else for you. Something better.” He drew out a string of real pearls. They were much more valuable than the plastic pearls. More lasting. Much more beautiful.
The girl gasped, her heart filling with joy. How glad she was that she had trusted her good father, exchanging that which she thought was so precious for something far better.”
Nate proceeded to explain how God often calls us to let go of things in this world, to give us something better. Susana thought of her friends. She knew God wanted her to leave them to follow Him whole-heartedly. But it was so hard! Deep down she knew she wasn’t happy. She felt good for a while, but when the party was over, she was left feeling empty and guilty. God was offering her something better! Deep, lasting happiness! Forgiveness of sins! He had died for her because He loved her! And He was now calling her to let go and trust Him.
After talking to a lady there at the camps, Susana decided to surrender her life to Christ. Through that very same teaching, her sister Silvia also came to believe in Christ as her Savior.
It was a struggle at first to leave her friends and find other things to fill her time with. But quickly Susana realized that her friends weren’t real friends. As soon as she told them she didn’t want to drink anymore, they made fun of her. They left her, as easy as that. As Susana read her Bible daily and grew in her faith, she experienced the happiness that she had been seeking her whole life. Jesus Christ was the One who loved her, knew her, and filled her with joy. He was the purpose of her life. And it was wonderful.
Susana has grown in her knowledge and love for the Lord, serving Him faithfully in the years since she trusted in Him. She has especially participated in teaching children’s classes in many neighborhoods of the city of Puruándiro. She spent a year at Camp Berea as part of a discipleship program, learning all she could from His Word and serving Him in new ways.