7 Real Reasons Why People Are Turning to God

God is on the move. Two thousand years ago Jesus made a promise to Peter, “I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it” (Matthew 16:18), and he has been doing that ever since. This past weekend at the amazing church I get to pastor we were privileged to baptize six individuals, people who have made a decision to place their trust in Jesus and go public with that faith through water baptism. With each baptism we ask the individual to share a little bit of their story as an encouragement to those who celebrate with them. Why are people turning to God? Here are seven real reasons, from the very words these precious individuals shared with our church:

1. Influence of family. Parenting is a sacred opportunity not just to shape a life but to shape a soul and teach children the truth about the God that loves them. For many who turn to God, their primary influence is their family. As one wrote, “My mom always taught me about God and tried to take us to church. I remember our family praying together to get a house and God answered our prayer.”

2. Exposure to church. Simply showing up to church on a regular basis can have a profound impact on your life and faith. If a church can create a warm, welcoming environment where people are accepted and embraced, lives can be changed! As one wrote, “Listening to the sermons helped me understand more about faith in Christ and what it means to be a Christian.”

3. Taking Jesus to their world. More than simply waiting for lost people to go to us, four of the six baptized this past Sunday made a decision to trust Jesus because Jesus was brought to them in their world: their school. Through an after school program led by our church volunteers, the gospel is shared on a regular basis. As several wrote, “This year at Good News Club, I prayed to receive Jesus as my Savior.”

4. Inability to find purpose and meaning on their own. Ecclesiastes 3:11 states that God has placed eternity within our hearts, spurring us on a life-long quest for meaning and purpose, which ultimately finds its fulfillment in God Himself. As one wrote, “What describes my life before Christ is that I was lost. I had no sense of direction until I started seeking for God.”