Troy Murphy Jr.



     Ever since I was born, Christianity has been a big part of my life. My family and I still go to church every Sunday and worship God, no matter our circumstances. My faith has helped me through many trials and tribulations in my life. From the inner conflicts that I’ve experienced in my own household, the hard times I’ve been through in basketball or even dealing with someone I have a problem with, I’ve always relied on God to help me throughout my situations. I also use the Bible as a reference to help me become a better person. Whenever I think I’m acting up or not being the best version of myself, I turn to the Bible for answers. 

       For the past few years, I’ve had a hard time trusting people. No matter how smart or influential they are to me and my life, I would trust myself and try to do things my way. This led to me becoming arrogant, hard-headed or even cocky in a way. However, I’ve had many reality checks and noticed that many things around me weren’t going as I planned. People looked at me different, as if I had some problems. They started to talk about me in ways I never would have thought of and it actually hurt my feelings. Therefore, I turned to the one source that I can always trust no matter what for answers, the Bible. The apostle Matthew wrote that Jesus told his disciples, “if anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up the cross and follow me.” In my search for answers, I came across this scripture. In summary, this scripture means to deny yourself and your own beliefs, humble yourself, and then finally trust people and follow through on what they said. I know that taking each of these steps and applying them to myself is going to lead to a better life; it is key to becoming a better person. 

         Change is not easy to overcome but I have started to see small differences around me and I have continued to trust others. Christianity is a lifestyle that I’ve learned to adopt not because my parents made me, but because of the positive effects that it has on my life. To me, it is all about knowing and catching my mistakes so that I can improve on myself daily and become the best person I can be.