Marianita Montgomery was born and raised Catholic and as a child loved to read books and learn about Jesus. When she was 13, a family difficulty made her begin to have doubts about her worth, leading her to seek her dignity by being the best in school, in music, etc. At 17, Marinita attended a Catholic youth conference where an encounter with Jesus Christ in the Blessed Sacrament bought her the words: “I’m not worthless.” That moment changed her entire perspective on life.

Breanna Bearden thought that just as long as life was fun she wouldn’t need anything else. One day, looking at a lake, she thought, “What if I walked into the lake and didn’t come out.” Immediately she came to her senses and thought, “No! I am supposed to live”. She realized that in order to live she needed God and the Catholic Church. That was a first turning point in her life. Another one was a personal encounter with Christ during a Palm Sunday Mass. She not only discovered the Lord for herself, but realized that she had to give Him to others.

Through Jack Mc Carthy’s testimony we can see how important it is to have good friends. After several years of not finding his place and living the faith only in a traditional way Jack found a youth group and met a group of friends. This led him to develop the most important friendship in his life: a friendship with Jesus Christ that changed his life and impelled him to share it with others.

For Sarah Stueve it wasn’t until she participated in a ACTS weekend retreat that she went from just a routine practice of the Faith (yet without the personal experience of Christ) to seeing that Jesus really is alive and that He knew her by name. That experience was the beginning of a personal relationship with Jesus and the awakening of the desire for others to experience the same joy through retreats and meeting other young people enthusiastic about their faith.

Patrick Grant grew up in a Catholic family. His parents, NET missionaries, always instilled the missionary mindset in their kids. He lived a normal Catholic life, attended Mass, frequent confession and retreats, but realized that despite all this, he didn’t know how to talk to God. One day during a week long retreat, he was before the Blessed Sacrament and made the necessary silence to be able to hear God’s voice. He left the retreat a new person, having understood God’s love for Him and that in order to hear Him, we have to listen.

Despite coming from a loving, religious family, at the age of 13 Lucy Starkie began to base her identity and worth on what others thought about her. In college she sought approval by putting up a strong front, which kept her from living authentically. At a retreat one night in adoration, she realized that she had to decide between the lies she made up about herself and the Truth Jesus had for her. She opted for Jesus and was flooded by a wave of love, turning her darkness into light.