My name is Maria Grazia, I’m 50, I’m married and I have 2 kids. I was raised in a family of believers and since I was a child, I attended the Brethren Evangelical Community in Foggia; I come from Apulia (Italy). The fact I had a Christian background doesn’t mean my life had always been sacred to the Lord. I was weak during my teenage years. When I was 13, I was torn between the pleasures of this world and the decision to give my life to Jesus Christ. The church gatherings usually bored me, maybe because I hadn’t got the true meaning of staying there. I’d become like a robot: I went there just to honor my parents, sometimes I’ve been even forced to. I felt empty and lonely, even if I had many friends out of the church.
I was a stranger among them since I didn’t approve they’re easy-going manners and their bad, dirty language. I didn’t like the places they reunited also. So I asked the Lord to help me, to enlighten my heart, in order to make the right decision. My father had been next to me, dedicating much time to me, reading the Bible. At 15, in a youth convention in Lesina (FG, Italy) through a series of Bible studies discussed by Gian Nunzio Artini; I opened my heart to Jesus Christ. That day, crying of joy, I witnessed I had accepted God’s Salvation gift (Acts 4:12). I was ready to serve Him, humbly. At the age of 23 I got baptized in the evangelical center named “Bethel” in Foggia, testifying my conversion and faith in God. I am now happy and quiet because I know a life without God leads to pain and death only. And you, dear reader, are you ready to forsake all the pleasures and vices of this world to accept Jesus Christ as your personal Savior, to join God’s big family?