I came to Switzerland with many walls up towards people. As I thought pretty highly of myself – I had always gone to church, with no phases of blatant rebellion – it was hard for me to see my own problems. I had worked hard to maintain the “good Christian” façade, but on the inside I was filled with pride, judgement, and self-justification. I had also built up a lot of bitterness over the years, most of which I was not even aware of, and this was keeping me from being able to open up and trust others. I allowed a harsh outer shell to cover up the hurts and insecurities that I had. These hidden thoughts and feelings were keeping me from being able to love others and have real relationships. I did not want anyone else’s help – I wanted to do everything on my own, just to show that I could. I was ungracious and impatient, holding others to the same high expectations I put on myself.

But I have a good God who has been so faithful to free me from all of this! He has filled me with His grace, showing me that I must first have grace on myself in order to then have it on other people. He has given me a passion to live in the light and in transparency, and shown me the freedom that comes with repentance and forgiveness. He has shown me the supreme importance of relationships, and that it is through these relationships that God wants to continue to shape me into who He wants me to be. He has filled me with His perfect peace that surpasses all understanding, and showed me that His thoughts and plans for my life are far better than mine – I do not need to have everything under control, but I can trust Him to be faithful and lead me. Most of all, He has showered on me His unfailing love, and through this has showed me what it truly means to love others. He has done so much more than I could have ever asked or imagined and I am forever thankful!

~ Caroline

When I thought about my expectations for the Master’s Commission year, I could not imagine that my life would be changed so much. I knew that I was opinionated, stubborn and full of pride, but I couldn’t see how much these things had an influence over my whole life. I also knew that I did not have an easy family background. After my parents divorced, I went into a boarding school and then eventually lived with foster parents. Still I was not conscious of how much my past had hurt me and made me unable to have healthy relationships with people. This year, God brought a lot of pain to the light. It wasn’t always easy, but as the hurts came to the surface, I was able to face them and talk about them. God brought healing and peace first into my heart, and then also into my relationships with my parents and friends. God became a Father to me who is not only sitting on His noble throne waiting for me, but one who is longing for me and running towards me. This made me start to understand God’s love in a totally different way. God Himself became so much more personal in my life, and I found a joy in Him that continues to grow. I also began to understand what God protected me from in my past. This produced a huge thankfulness in me: thankfulness for apparently normal things like a bed, a roof over my head and daily meals, but also for all the relationships I found this year. God brought down my pride, and I realized that my opinion is not the only one that matters, and I can learn a lot of things from other people. God has made me able to open myself to people and share my heart in relationships.

~ Christian

God took me seriously when I told Him this one night that I wanted to become more than a normal Christian. But the problem was that I was not really living what I was preaching. I knew a lot of things before, there were lots of information in my head, but practically there was nothing. During this year I faced reality when God showed me that I was a young Christian guy with no Christ-likeness. I wasn’t reflecting God’s character with my behaviour, body and heart. My heart was more balanced to what does not please God; for example with my rebellion against authorities (mainly parents), my pride and loving the world more than His law.

Facing these many wrong decisions I made and carrying them for several years made me fall into self-pity, pride, and listening more to the lies of the enemy than to what God says about me. For a long time I couldn’t forgive myself for what I did, but God revealed to me what He thinks and says about me. God says “My love for you does not change no matter what you have done”-“your identity is not what you have done, but what I speak over you”, and nobody can discuss that, not even myself. Through this God brought restoration in my heart, forgiveness for me and peace in my life.

After that, He showed me that He has also called me to be part of His kingdom, but for that He needs me to reflect His character, recognizing that I am a human being depending on Him, with a wide-opened heart to His instruction with submission and humility, not anymore with pride. Having a humble attitude showed up to me the blind spots I had; it brought me to the right way and made me sensitive. Humility makes me recognize that I don’t know, but that I want to learn.

~ Diego

A picture that would represent this year in Master’s commission would be the cocoon changing into a butterfly. I came to Switzerland broken and desperate for restoration. My heart was rebellious and I had no clue what it meant to hear God’s voice or to walk in His identity. I was searching for people’s affirmation because I didn’t know who I was. I was walking through life with a mask that was hiding the true Marika because I didn’t accept her the way she was.

But the Lord is faithful and He has changed many aspects inside of me. It didn’t take long until he revealed to me what it means to hear and discern his voice. From that time on He has just been so faithful to me in speaking his thoughts, identity and truths into my heart. The more I was obedient in the steps He was showing me, the more freedom I could embrace.

He showed me how precious he thinks I am and that I can be free to be myself. He spoke truth into my life that gave me confidence and established a new, true identity in Him. I could finally begin to see the diamond He has put inside of me. Furthermore, He took away all my fears and freed me from a double life, guilt and lies. He had a strategic plan to restore me. I am so incredibly thankful for the gift of freedom He has given me this year in many areas and for the peace He has granted me to just be myself. I now know who I am and that I don’t have to walk in shame but that His desire for me is that I search for His voice of truth so he can direct me into His good ways. I know this is only the beginning of an exciting life with Him of experiencing again and again His transformation. God is good!

~ Marika

I still remember the word that Bri had for me in the beginning of my MC year – “peace”.

Peace with my heavenly Father, with my family, but first of all with myself.

I came out of a life filled with parties, alcohol and girls. I was living a double-life in which I adapted to wherever or with whomever I was. I was changing colours like a chameleon to its environment in order to hide my mistakes and weaknesses. With that life I entered the Master’s Commission.

I always felt that if I would reveal my weaknesses I would be rejected. As a result, I often pretended to be someone I wasn’t. God’s grace allowed me to look closely at my life during the first week when Pierre Cranga came and spoke about the Fatherheart of God. God brought to a point when I realized the seriousness of what I had done. Only by the grace and never-ending love of God was I able to forgive myself for the life that I had been living and to make a new start. Through this decision God gave me joy and a sense of life. He restored my longing for a real and deep relationship with Him and also with others. Because God showed me how He sees me- as His beloved son- I can admit my weakness, accept myself and no longer live in the shame of my past. I know that God made me just as He wanted me to be. I can now live in the peace He has given me. I know that I belong to Him and that He loves me. I don’t have to seek acceptance because it is enough to know that I am accepted and loved by the King Himself.

~ Raphael

God was so happy when I decided to come to Him that He ran towards me and took me into His arms. He is a God full of mercy, a God who doesn’t only restore the broken but who renews.

This year I got to know myself much better. I discovered how God sees me and what my identity is in Christ. I found out what it means to have real, honest relationships and how to encourage and confront. This has been an intense year for me, but now I can see that in all the processes I was going through, God was able to work mightily in my life.

I learned to persevere and to pursue my mentor regularly with my challenges like fear of man, self-pity and the fear of not being accepted or taken seriously by others. I learned what it means to live in discipleship. Realizing who God is in me and how He can use me, has brought many breakthroughs in my faith. I also learned not to hide anymore. I now know the importance of openness and sharing about myself.

Quiet time had always been a religious act in my life that I would only do if I was in the right mood. Now I can say that having a relationship with God means so much more to me – I am dependent on Him. Nothing- neither my friends nor media nor my favorite hobbies- can take the place of what He can and will continue to give me. This year I have come to love the Bible and to see the treasures that are in it. I have learned to clearly hear His voice through His Word.

I am thankful for how He made me. Today I can be myself, and I can say that I have faith not only because I believe in God but also because I have started to live it.

~ Simon

Hey all! My name is Rebecca and I graduated from The Master’s Commission in my beautiful home of Chilliwack, BC.  I can’t begin to tell you how much God has transformed my life.  I think that once a person catches onto the freedom that God has for them there is a part of their life that is never the same.  I came into my MC year like a black and white photo.  In fact, in one of my bibles I still have the picture that I sent in with my application and ironically enough it’s black and white.  Once in a while I pull it out to remember what I’ve come out of and I end up shaking my head laughing because unless you knew me before you wouldn’t know what I was like then.  I made a choice for the first time in my life to step out on my own and make my relationship with God personal again.  I grew up in a Christian family and I knew the walk, I knew the talk and yet I knew I was missing something.  God challenged me to seek Him and He armed me with a promise that I would find Him if I did (Jer. 29:12-14a).  Since then color has been pouring into the picture of my life like never before.  I love it!  I love Him!  How many people in today’s culture can stand with an answer for the hope in their eyes?   How many people as Young Adults can say I know what freedom is or what it means to live with a clear conscience?  It’s crazy but it’s true.  When you purpose to become a disciple of God you can’t remain the same and carry the revelation He has for you.  Why would you want to do that?  That’s like giving your dog a steak when you’re hungry.  I’d rather eat the steak! *smile

God came into my life and transformed me from the top to the bottom.  Literally…  He renewed my mind, healed my heart and restored life to my body.  I now live fully alive and a lot healthier.  The old has passed away and behold a new creation is going for it!  I once was pretty much afraid of my shadow and steeped in pride.  I didn’t realize that I had part to play in other peoples lives because I was too concerned about my own.  Little did I know that it’s better to live like a funnel then to try to keep everything to myself.  I caught a hold of God in my MC year and I’m not letting go.  To those that are reading this I hope you are encouraged to go after Him yourself… Even if you think you know Him already.  I did and I’ll never be the same again.  What is one year in your life when it arms you for eternity? PRICELESS

~ Rebecca, Chilliwack MC

This first portion of my year here at MMC has been amazing. As soon as I arrived here God has been working in my life in a big way. Most of the studies I have gone through have been helping solidify my identity in Christ and building my confidence in relationship with Him. I love working with ConnXion and Fusion, the preteen and youth programs here and have been building some great friendships with the kids. My highlight so far of course has to be flying to New York with Pastor Eduardo and getting the opportunity to serve Metro Ministries through their Boot Camp program. I’m excited to see what God has in store for the months to come.

~ Garrett Alder, Metro MC

WOW! That’s how I would describe what has been going on for me. There has been so much change in my life, and it all started when I said yes to God
to come to Master’s Commission. I remember having such great God experiences and changes at MMC, and the many lovely people that surrounded my life and made me feel part of their family. It was the best thing ever and has completely changed my life. After graduation, I was wondering how to pick up the pieces of what I left, when so much had changed. I didn’t know what to do. By the end of it all, I had this alone feeling, but what God had in mind has been something more than what I could imagine. I started going to my new church and just being a servant of God and helping out (keeping the MC attitude alive in me), then I got a job there as a summer intern. Then the most amazing thing had happened. Because I kept that Master’s Commission attitude, one of the Pastors gave me the opportunity to be a children’s pastor at one of their smaller churches; and since then I’ve been so blessed in the ministry that God has put me in. This is just one of the little things that God has done for me. I wish that I could tell you more of how much MMC has helped me change into the person that God wanted me to be.

~ Julien Bogner, Metro MC