Testimonies of Faith

I have been fortunate in my faith journey to always be connected to church. Prior to moving to Durham, I spent my entire childhood and early adulthood, except for time away at college, attending Temple Baptist Church with my mother and grandparents in Newport News, Virginia. My earliest memories include weeknight youth group, Sunday services, and vacation Bible school, where I first began to understand what it means to be a Christian.

I was also blessed with many family examples of living out the Christian faith beyond church attendance. My grandfather was a church leader, coordinating disaster relief along the East Coast, sheltering and feeding the homeless in our community, singing in the choir, and serving as a deacon. As the eldest grandchild, I often tagged along on these adventures, learning firsthand how serving others is a way of serving God.

I have had a personal relationship with the Lord for many years, so it may seem surprising that it has taken me this long to be baptized. The truth is, I was stubborn. Throughout high school, my mom encouraged me almost every Sunday to consider baptism, but fear of standing before so many people, combined with youthful rebellion, made me resistant.

That changed when I left home for college at William & Mary. For the first time, my faith became truly personal. No one was there to wake me up for church or push me to join a Christian group. I had to make those decisions for myself. By God’s grace, the foundation laid in my early years made those choices easier. I joined InterVarsity Christian Fellowship my freshman year, where I formed some of my closest friendships and, most importantly, met my amazing wife, Emily. Later I began attending the Baptist Collegiate Ministry as well, introduced by none other than my grandfather, who happened to be serving dinner one Sunday evening.

After graduation, I entered graduate school for physical therapy and athletic training. Despite the busyness, I continued to attend church regularly. When I completed graduate school, I moved to Durham to start work, while Emily remained in Richmond teaching in an elementary school. We soon got engaged, and as we built our lives together, finding a church home became a priority. Although the search was complicated by the COVID-19 pandemic, one of the first churches we visited was Yates, and we have felt at home ever since.

Through the transitions of college, graduate school, and beginning my career, my faith has matured in ways I never could have predicted. In recent years, I have walked through the loss of my grandfather and the struggles Emily and I have faced in growing our family. While everyone experiences hardship at some point, I count it as a blessing to know where my foundation lies.

No matter the storms of life, I confess Christ is my Lord and Savior. He has shown me that no situation is too great or beyond redemption. I acknowledge that I am sinful, but I also know my sins have already been forgiven through Christ’s death on the cross.

Today I look forward to baptism as an outward expression of my long-held faith and as a commitment to this body of believers. As I move forward, I pray that you will continue to walk alongside me as I pursue Christ more deeply. I am eager to see how the Lord will use the gifts he has given me to serve both this church community and the larger body of Christ.

I consider it one of my greatest blessings and privileges that I have never experienced a moment in my life when I did not know the love, grace, and mercy of Jesus Christ. Like all disciples, God has walked with me through the hills and valleys, the light and the darkness, the victories and the defeats.

There have been times when I have questioned him, felt distant from him, and cried out to him in the night. There have been times when I have worshiped him with my whole heart, sung before him, and shared the most special communion with him. Through it all, the Lord has been faithful to me.

The past few years have not been easy for our family, and I have frequently found myself seeking God’s faithfulness. If he is faithful to his promises, then what has he actually promised me? If putting my hope in something means I can expect it with full confidence, what can I confidently expect from Jesus? If the Lord is good, where do I see his goodness in my life? Psalm 100 says, “For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.”

This idea of generational faithfulness has been heavy on my heart recently. I am overwhelmingly grateful to the generations that came before me for teaching and instructing me in the ways of the Lord. My parents and grandparents have been powerful examples of what it means to follow Jesus and live out his commandments. My parents’ marriage continues to be a guiding force in my life, and I am continuously blessed by their wisdom, love, and sacrifice.

I was baptized as an infant, and I am forever thankful that I was adopted into God’s family before I could even make that choice myself. As a teenager, I made a public declaration of faith through catechism and confirmation. My family continues to guide me and support me as I grow in my adult faith.

My husband, Jeffrey, came into my life just as I was growing into my adult faith. We have been together for ten years, and I can confidently say I have known the love of Jesus because I have been loved by Jeffrey. He is a steady, strong, and life-giving man. He loves me with the same love that Jesus has for his church, and my heart has been radically changed by him. He teaches me every day what it means to live out the selflessness and grace of Christ. It is the greatest honor of my life to be loved and led by him. He is my joy in the midst of sorrow, and he will forever and always be my greatest gift.

Jeffrey and I have been walking the path of unexplained infertility for the past four years. We have lost two children, and in the midst of our grief I have been thinking about God’s faithfulness to the generation that we hope will come. As people have prayed for us, we are continually reminded to remember God’s faithfulness.

So what can I expect from God? Although we have our desires for the next generation, I have been reminded that God does not promise me children. He does not promise to keep hard things from happening. He does not promise that I will be protected from all earthly harm.

So what does God promise me? God promises that although I am a sinner, he has redeemed me and invited me into his presence. He promises to protect me from eternal separation from him. He does not leave me in my suffering, and I do not walk through the waters alone. He is strong when I am weak, and his love endures forever. Although I am not worthy, he promises that I will be with him in eternity.

When I feel like God is not answering my prayers, I am reminded that Jesus’ prayer for me is that I would be in communion with him. And that prayer has already been answered. So in the midst of our grief and loss, I rejoice in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Today, I am trusting in God’s promises. I am recognizing his faithfulness that endures from generation to generation.

Jeffrey and I are so grateful to Yates for coming into our lives during a time when we desperately needed a community to walk alongside us. It is a joy to be in fellowship with this community of believers, and we look forward to the years of growth, celebration, and redemption to come.

To start: I’m nervous, and I’ve not done this before.

My name is Samantha Allred. I was born in Virginia but raised in Charlotte. I was baptized Catholic. I went to church, said my prayers, and so on—but after I got out of school I didn’t go to church anymore. I strayed from God a few times, but through my family’s prayers and God’s love for me, I was always pulled out of the fire and brought back home, so to speak.

I have three beautiful, wonderful children whom I thank God for every day. Still, I wasn’t going to church and I wasn’t “walking with God.” I’ve always felt God—the Holy Spirit—around me, but honestly I was too anxious, too scared, and felt unworthy.

Then God brought my daughter Lia to Chapel Hill. My son Jason and I followed shortly after, and I have a whole new life here. My daughter was telling me about this church she goes to—“Yates Baptist in Durham.” I started coming here to Yates, I think on Mother’s Day.

The people here at Yates are the most awesome, and God definitely shines through all of you. I wanted to be a part of that. So I started coming every Sunday, and slowly but surely God moved me to ask Keith if I could join the choir, even though I had never been in a choir. Then I asked Christopher to join the church, become a member, and be baptized into the Yates church family. I guess I don’t always do things in the right order (haha).

Before I started coming to Yates, I barely left my house—just nervous and anxious all of the time. I was not in a good place emotionally, and so I guess I was not in a good place spiritually, because I know it makes a difference.

And now I’m in choir, I go to Bible study, I help with the Sonshine Group, I help in any way I can. I’ve never felt like this before, and I can’t wait to get baptized and let the water wash everything away and make me new—in Jesus’ name.