Like most students my age, I have endured various trials and tribulations. From a young age, I was exposed to the darkness of this world. Despite this, through the adversity I've faced, I've witnessed that goodness has and always will endure. I am who I am today because of the challenges I've overcome. Throughout the years, I've seen the Power of God bring life to what seemed dead. I've seen Him bring healing and restoration to what I thought would be forever broken. For this reason, I have dedicated my life fully to Him, and my experiences will bring hope to anyone looking for that Light at the end of the tunnel. I am a child of a military veteran. My father fought for five years in the United States Army, serving as an infantryman in The Iraq War. Only by God's Divine Protection was he able to return home safely. However, despite not being seriously harmed physically, I saw firsthand how the effects of intense military combat progressively deteriorated my dad's mental health. From the outside, my dad, who is 5'10" and over 200 pounds with a bodybuilder's physique, seemed as if he was able to bear the weight of the whole earth on his shoulders, but on the inside, the weight of his trauma crushed him to his soul. For years, PTSD and alcohol abuse plagued not only my dad but my whole household. As a young child, verbal and physical abuse was something that I experienced regularly. I would dread the moment that my dad would come home from work due to the chaos that would ensue. Being pushed to the floor and strangled, pinned to a wall, thrown across a room, and forced out of a car onto the side of a road at night, along with multiple busted lips, are only some of the abuses I had to endure. Being told that I wasn't his son and that he could kill me like he killed people while in the military are among the threats and insults I received. My mother's attempts to defend me would only lead to contempt towards her, dividing my family further. Despite all this, I held fast to my faith in Jesus. When he'd storm out of the house in a drunken rage, I'd pray that God would return him home. The times I saw him try to commit suicide, I would fall to my knees, begging for God's intervention, only being able to offer my tears as a sacrifice. Even when hope was frail, I saw how my prayers had never been in vain. The Lord has come through for my family. He has broken the chains of oppression off my dad, is restoring my parents' marriage, and healing me from my own pain. We didn't have to overcome this battle alone; Jesus Christ overcame it for us. Only by faith in Him has my family seen brighter days. I now live as a testimony of the Saving Power of The Great I Am. My goal is to become a licensed psychiatrist and use my personal experiences and professional training to help those battling mental health issues such as PTSD. So many people in the world are hurting as I once was, and I believe God has raised me as a voice of freedom to bring hope to those going through the same storms I was. I want to use my education to improve the world by showing others that victory is already theirs and that faith truly does move mountains.

I am a high school senior in El Paso, Texas, enrolled in dual credit courses through El Paso Community College. As the son of a military veteran, I have been greatly inspired by my father's dedication and service to this nation. At 17 years old, my dad eagerly enlisted in the Army just a few months after the attacks on September 11, 2001. After completing basic training, his first station was in Vilseck, Germany, followed by a deployment in Kosovo. In Kosovo, he aided in maintaining peace between the Albanians and Serbians in the aftermath of their civil war. Some of his duties included guarding buildings and preventing insurrections. Less than a year later, he was assigned to fight in The Iraq War. While in Iraq, he served as an infantryman in a Brigade Reconnaissance Troop (BRT). As a BRT, my dad assaulted high-priority areas and gathered information for the CIA and Special Forces. The information collected by this team led to the capture of several members of the "Iraqi Playing Cards," a group of the most wanted Iraqi war criminals. Additionally, my dad served as a team leader, guiding troops in locating stashed weapons and liberating provinces throughout Iraq. His unit was also a crucial part of Operation Phantom Fury, the operation that liberated the city of Al-Fallujah in late 2004. After the conclusion of this operation, my dad was stationed in El Paso, Texas. There, he attended the Army Leadership Course, earning a spot on The Commandant's List, graduating in the top three of his class. He was promoted to sergeant because of this, along with his exceptional combat and leadership skills. However, due to medical evaluations that diagnosed him with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Traumatic Brain Injury caused by witnessing firsthand the horrors of war, he was medically discharged. Even after leaving the Army, he continued to serve his country and worked as a weapons instructor in Fort Bliss to train a new generation of soldiers for combat. My father's story is one of great patriotism and courage, and I aspire to honor his legacy in my own contributions to the world. While following in my father's footsteps, joining the military is something I have considered; I've realized that my calling is to serve others not through combat but through mental health. I plan to complete my introductory courses at El Paso Community College. I'll then earn a bachelor's degree in biology before medical school. After medical school, I'd complete a residency program specializing in psychiatry. Post graduation, after receiving all the licenses and certificates necessary, I see myself working as a professional psychiatrist, supporting people who struggle with mental health challenges. I've seen the toll that PTSD and other mental illnesses can have on a person. For that reason, I've made it my mission to be a voice of compassion and hope to those under my care, helping them find healing and a future of new opportunities.

As a Gen-Z American, I have heard the phrases “my truth” and “your truth” many times. I’ve heard people on social media saying “find your truth” or “do what makes you happy.” But as a disciple of Jesus, I know that Jesus is the Way, Truth, and the Life, as stated in John 14:6. However, I, like many people my age, spent years living what I thought was “my truth.” I spent the first half of my teen years addicted to pornography and confused about my sexuality. The lies that society fed me about sexuality were appealing to me, leading me to fall into a homosexual lifestyle. That was “my truth.” My truth was that I was attracted to males and that I was free to act on that attraction. As Paul writes in Ephesians 2, I was “dead in my transgressions and sins… gratifying the cravings of my flesh and following my desires and thoughts.” As I got older and began realizing the error of my ways, I allowed God to work in me. And after encounters with the Holy Spirit and learning God’s truth, I was set free from bondage. To answer the question: what is the difference between our truth and God’s truth, I’d say that our truth will always feed our fleshly desires. Galatians 5:19-21 explains what these desires are. In today’s society, these desires are painted to look pleasing to people. We are told that partaking in this will make us feel good and are even healthy for us. Society will say it’s ok to sleep with whoever we want whenever we want because it releases oxycontin and endorphins. Or, we’re told that there’s multiple ways to salvation and that it’s ok to worship whatever god we want to because we’ll all be saved in the end. We’re also told that we don’t have to forgive those who’ve hurt us, because it’ll put us in a vulnerable position to be harmed again and because the other person doesn’t deserve it. These are only a handful of the many, many ways that the world will try to disguise sin as truth. In reality, however, these are only half-truths. Yes, these might trigger emotions that we equate to joy, but these half truths only lead to destruction. As Romans puts it, “the wages of sin is death.” King Solomon writes in Proverbs 14:12 that “there is a way that appears to be right, but in the end leads to death.” Living in what one might call “my truth” may seem beneficial for some time, but as they grow older, it’ll pull them farther and farther away from the life that Jesus has for them. After establishing what “my truth” is, this is what God’s Truth is. Unlike my truth, the Truth of God will always be contrary to the desires of the flesh. Going back to Galatians 5, Paul mentions how “the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another.” In light of this, my truth and His can never coexist. But His Truth is so much greater. His Truth leads to the abundant life promised in John 10. Even though we will never fully understand His Truth, since His thoughts are wiser than ours, as stated by Isaiah, a life surrendered to the Will of God brings joy, peace, freedom, and pleasure that the world simply can’t give. In John 17, Jesus Himself prays that we’d be sanctified by God’s Truth. I’ve learned that what He wants for me is always better than what I want.

My name is Jose Marmolejos. I'm 17 years old and from El Paso, Texas. My goals for education are to graduate from Liberty University with a degree in psychology and a doctorate in theology. Within these last 2 years, I have become very passionate about my faith in Christ and have discovered that I want to dedicate my life to helping others on their walk. Lately, I've noticed that many Christians struggle with various mental health issues, including depression, anxiety, and addiction. Additionally, for 6 years, I battled addiction and struggled with thoughts of anxiety and rejection. Unfortunately, Christians who have these issues have been taught that the reason for their struggles is a lack of prayer or a lack of faith. However, I have learned that this is not always the case. It's safe to say that even the Word of God itself supports this. For example, in 1 Kings 19, we see how Elijah, one of the greatest prophets faced depressing thoughts and even wished that he would die. Furthermore, in Luke 22, Christ Himself became so anxious about his impending crucifixion, that He began to sweat drops of blood. This is why I want to pursue a degree in both Biblical studies and psychology. That way, I can help people with their mental health using what I've learned about the human mind and applying it to Biblical principles. I believe that these two fields don't have to be mutually exclusive. In my process, I've also learned that there is a great need for mental health professionals who are filled with The Holy Spirit. After all, nothing can be done by might or by power, but by the Spirit of the Lord, and the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God for the casting down of strongholds. A film that I've seen recently that has had a significant impact on my goals for the future is "Sound of Freedom". In the movie, Tim Ballard, played by Jim Caviezel journeys throughout Colombia to rescue a young girl who was a victim of child trafficking. Using his faith in God as his strength, Ballard successfully rescues the girl. The phrase "God's children are not for sale" is repeatedly used during the movie. This phrase, along with Ballard's obedience to the Lord compelled me to use the compassion that The Lord has given me to serve the Kingdom. The movie shows us that it's not enough just to feel bad for those in bondage, or be angry about injustice. Rather, as Christians, we're called to be the Hands and Feet of Christ and use what He's given us to be a light in this dark world. Unlike Tim Ballard, I'm not called to rescue people from physical captivity. However, The Lord has placed a deep conviction in me to enter the mental health field. Just like how God's children are not for sale into the hands of human traffickers, God's children are not for sale into the hands of depression, anxiety, addiction, or whatever prison the enemy wants to keep us in. God is a God of total freedom, and I want to do my part to help people enjoy the freedom that Jesus died to give us.