At the age of three I decided that I wanted to be a Christian. But how does a three-year-old grasp the finer points of Christianity? Simple. I understood that it had something to do with being forgiven of sin. So I stacked some cardboard boxes, kicked them over, and then knelt down to ask for forgiveness of this horrible sin.

As I grew I realize now that I never really got too much beyond that perception of Christianity. I was in it to escape from the burden of being imperfect. In other words, I was a Christian because of what it did for me.

Something changed in my life when I was 16. I was introduced to the world of high school theatre. Something about it gripped me and I had to find out more about it.

Within the first four weeks of my university freshman year I had decided not only that I was going to study theatre, but that it was going to be the only thing that mattered for the rest of my life.

To be perfectly honest, university life was wonderful. People would fawn over me because of my theatrical performances. I had the professors eating out of my hand in class. I had friends everywhere. And I continually kept hearing the same comment: "Zach, your life is perfect!"

And I agreed. My life was centered on one thing: Myself. And I had no problem with that.

That all changed one Wednesday. There was a Christian informational table set up in front of the cafeteria. One Wednesday my roommate and I walked by, glanced at the table, grabbed our lunch. My roommate, who was not a Christian but who was interested, turned to me and asked, "Say, who was Jesus?"

I paused. "He's not for everybody."
Something cracked inside of me.

I knew I was lying. I remembered at that moment the most famous verse in the Bible, "God so loved the world that he gave his only son that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life."
Jesus is perfect for anybody.

I realized that I didn't really know Jesus at all. Yet he was exactly the kind of person I wanted to know. Someone who was selfless and loving. The exact opposite of me.

And that was the true beginning of my relationship with God. He loved me in spite of who I was. That's true friendship.

Since then a lot has changed in my life. I have had the chance to apologize to my roommate. Pride, while always present, is no longer the thing that drives me. And I find myself being very glad that God's love is greater than I can imagine. Great enough to love a proud college student... or a 3 year old who kicks cardboard boxes.

"Far greater news the Bible brings, It bids you fly and gives you wings."  -John Bunyan