I have been raised with a faith in God and as a Christian, but also with an emphasis on my academics and education. Combining both of these has led me to explore my faith and belief systems and arrive in an even stronger conviction that there is a Higher Power. First, my family traditions and church community have provided me with a strong support system throughout my childhood. The teachings of my church mentors and family have given me the freedom to allow doubt and arrive at my own conclusion, when it comes to the existence of God. I have had several life-changing events in my life that have left me wondering how bad things happen to good people if God does exist. The death of my Uncle Luke, after having gone missing for 3 days and subsequently found deceased in a local river, was one of the hardest and most spiritually confusing things I have experienced. My family was devastated, but they also joined together in the search, and then to support each other after the eventual outcome. I realized that while I first felt betrayed by God for my uncle's death, that I experienced the love of God in the healing afterward. The way my community, friends, and even strangers helped my family showed me that unconditional and unselfish love that exists. Second, my interest in and studies of science and math have shown me the amazing ways our universe works. From mathematical formulas like Fibonacci's sequence to scientific evidence of evolution, I am convinced that these perfectly created wonders could only exist with a Creator and architect of an all-knowing, all-powerful existence. The evidence I have seen and continue to discover as I study math and science, hoping to become a physician, gives me comfort in placing my faith in God as a real entity and a power working for good in the universe. This is, in part, why I want to become a doctor: so I can be an example of the unselfish nature of God in helping others. I also want to become a scientific advocate of promoting faith and science together because so many people think that these can only be mutually exclusive. While I have a strong conviction in my faith in God, I also want to show compassion and understanding to people who have not arrived at that same conclusion or have not witnessed the same experiences I have had that would have allowed them to believe, too. I believe that my example as a non-judgmental believer will create more understanding and acceptance between people of diverse backgrounds and beliefs.