At Fellowship, we celebrate life change! These are life change stories from everyone baptized on June 8th. We hope you will take the time to read these stories. We are also opening a discussion board on Facebook so that you can comment on the stories and maybe share a little bit of your own story. Just scroll to the bottom of the FC Facebook Page (you will have to sign up if you are not currently a Facebook member):

Christa Fattizzo

I became a Christ-follower almost 15 years ago. At the time, I was involved in a bad relationship and had made some terrible decisions regarding the direction my life was going. I had attempted to commit suicide on four different occasions but was unsuccessful each time. At the time, I was upset that I did not die, but now I know that God had greater things in store for me. Through His loving grace, I was able to climb out of the darkness that had encompassed my life. I left my life of mistakes behind and started helping others overcome their obstacles. I learned that with God, all things are possible. I now see the beauty in every day and am thankful that God has given me the opportunity to continue enjoying this world. I have His strength and His guidance with me at all times. I have helped others (including my husband) find their way to Christ. My husband was baptized at your last session and I feel it is my turn to publicly declare my faith. I would also like to help my son as he starts his walk with Christ at this Baptism.

Michael Fattizzo, Jr.

Michael is my four-and-a-half-year-old son. He has been with us as his daddy became a Christ follower. He knows that Jesus died for us and that all sins were forgiven through the blood of Christ. He wishes to express his desire to walk in God’s love and grace by being baptized with me (Christa). I would love to give you more of a story for him, but at such a young age, there is not much to tell. I guess all that is really important is that he wants to be baptized to show the world what his beliefs are and to have a closer walk with Christ.

Travis McDowell

I was saved as a teenager and have returned to the church beginning in Jan ‘07. God has helped me through a recent divorce and I am ready to experience whatever He has in store for me. My kids enjoy attending church, which is vastly different than my experience growing up, where we were forced to go by my parents. I have enjoyed John’s messages and all of the great people that I have met at Fellowship. I got plugged into Men of Ice about nine months ago and am proud to call Lee a friend of mine. I hope to help others as they go through similar experiences with marital problems and be an example of God’s ability to bring someone through those trying times and create a happier single person. I believe that we should not judge these individuals, but support them regardless of the outcome of their marriages.

Elizabeth Singh

I’ve had a relationship with Jesus Christ dating back as far as I have memories. My relationship with Him really grew to a new level when I got into college. The Holy Spirit led me to a great group of Christian friends that helped me mature and develop a new understanding of what my decision to walk with Christ really meant. They challenged me to grow the seed that was already in my heart into something much more meaningful. One of the greatest impacts of that is the knowledge that there is so much more to life than the here and now. Staying connected with God’s perfect will through prayer has been very important toward keeping me focused on that truth. He does not always lead me down the easiest path, but in the long run when I listen to Him, He makes it worth it. Making the decision to be re-baptized today is another step on my exciting journey.

Steven Singh

Being a Christ-follower has changed my personal definition of success. My goals used to be centered on status and material. Now I focus on listening and really trying to hear what God wants for my life. Or in other words, I have developed a deeper and more meaningful relationship with God. This approach has enabled me to spend more time on my foundation like my marriage, family and church. With my foundation in good condition, I have become more comfortable with who I am and what I believe in. I know I have and will continue to make mistakes in my life. However, since I have developed this relationship with God, I truly feel like my life is now on the right path.

Dana Fisher

Two Christmases ago, I decided to commit to a life as a Christ-follower. After a lifetime of hardship, I had distanced myself from Him, and even after someone special brought me back to the church, I was skeptical. I had never been to a church like this before. I felt at home at Fellowship, I felt like this was the place that I could relax and learn about the Lord in a fun and exciting environment. After I committed to him, my life changed dramatically, and I feel His presence all the time. If I ever need a shoulder to cry on, I pray to Him and can almost literally feel Him placing His hands on my shoulders to comfort me. He shows me signs and gives me hope to live my life in His name. He has blessed me with so much over the past year and half that there is no way I could ever express in words just how grateful I am.

Paul Truitt

I grew up in another denomination with parents that attended most Sundays and were active in home groups and many other church activities. I went to youth group and Sunday school most Sundays. I went to a private Christian school in high school. If you asked me then if I was a Christian, I would definitely have said yes, mainly because my family said I was a Christian – just as I was an American because I was born in America. As time passed and I went away to college, I didn’t regularly attend church or really live the life of a Christian. Toward the end of college I met my wife, Doris. I was not particularly looking for a girlfriend who grew up in a similar family to mine with similar beliefs that were instilled in me as a child, but God is in charge and I know he brought us together. For five or six years after college, we attended church randomly and I continued to live life without a relationship with Christ. In 2006, we moved to PA for my job. With the stress of home projects, long hours and heavy travel for work, a one-year-old at home and another on the way, we hit some rough times in our marriage. I was home very little during the week to help with my son and when I was home, I was stressed from work and took out my frustrations on my family. We had been looking for a new church in the area and found Fellowship in December 2006. I was listening to a sermon about relationships and something hit me like a brick. I had spent the first 30 years of my life thinking I was a Christian when I was only living a Christian life one day a week on Sundays. I needed to ask Christ into my life seven days a week. From that day forward I have seen change in my life that I never knew could happen. We started attending a small group and the first two series the group worked through were on strengthening marriage. I don’t even want to think about what the past two years could have turned into if I had continued on the path I was on, with work taking over my life and destroying my family. I still have a great deal of growing to do in strengthening my relationship with Christ and my family, but now I am living a life as a Christian that is entirely different that the life I lived two years ago. My wife and I now have a relationship that is stronger that it has ever been and my boys cheer for me when I get home from work.

Doris Truitt

I grew up going to church every Sunday. It was part of our family routine. I was baptized in another denomination as a baby and was involved in many church activities throughout my childhood. I remember being asked as a child if believed in God and saying, “Yes! If God didn’t exist, who would have made the earth?” So growing up believing in God made sense to me, but for many years I never truly knew what living a life in a close relationship with God really meant. I would say I have always been a believer, but it has not been until the past few years that I’ve strived to really strengthen my personal relationship with God and live my life through Christ. Now that I have decided to trust God’s path for me, my life feels more complete. I do not feel anxious about the future and I trust in His plan for me. I feel this has made a tremendous difference on my outlook of life, my relationships with family and friends and my attitude towards others. I also feel that Fellowship Church has really helped me to grow spiritually and has had many relevant messages that have had a huge impact on my life. Being baptized as an adult symbolizes to me that I’m starting fresh in my spiritual journey and that I am renewing my commitment to follow Christ.

Pam Niemann

It’s amazing how clear things become when you turn your life over to Christ. This is my story about how my life has changed.

Like so many people at Fellowship Church, I was raised in another denomination and more or less went through all the motions. I was also a member of two other denominations. But I never felt that I “got” the big picture. That was until this past summer.

I had been dating a man for over six months and finally knew what true love was. Unfortunately for me, I was the first woman that he had dated after a very long marriage, and he needed to be sure before he could be in another long-term relationship. So he left and said that he would not come back unless it was for good. Luckily, it was the summer and I was able to look forward to long weekends at the beach with and without my children. But still, no matter how hard I tried to will myself to be happy and to trust that things happen for a reason, I was still sad. I can remember leaving leaving my mom a desperate voice message explaining that while I knew that I had my health, a good job, two wonderful children, a beautiful house and wanted for nothing, I could not go on. I was too sad and needed this man so desperately in my life. That was until I heard a message at another church one Sunday late in June. The worship leader shared an experience in her life with the congregation. She asked if any of us ever had one of those days when we felt like we were going through life all alone, like no one cared. She went on to say that she had one of those days not too long ago and her girlfriend asked her to stop what she was doing and to just talk to God. Let Him know that He was all that she needed and that He was more than enough for her. And much to her surprise, she felt better. I decided to give it a try and said a prayer right there in church letting God know that He was all that I needed, that He was more than enough and asked Him to please give me strength. I did not want to cry anymore. And from that day on, I did not cry (at least not over my lost love). Life was good. It was the summer and I was going to enjoy it. I no longer needed counseling but could be there to support friends who needed a shoulder to lean on. Whenever I felt sad, I would look out into the beautiful, spacious, blue sky and talk to God and remind Him and myself that He was more than enough for me. As for the man I speak of, he did come back. He asked me to marry him, and 18 days later, he left again. This time, I only cried for three days and I was able to pick up the pieces, move on, and chalk it all up to a learning experience. I had God’s answer to this situation, and His answer was “No. This is not the man for you.”

It is amazing how putting your faith in Him can change your whole aura. I walked down the same street to work for the past 13 years but now the street seemed different. Complete strangers would smile at me and say hello, good morning. The weight that you carry around with you that causes you to worry over insignificant things, to make you look at the glass as being half empty, that holds you back is gone and you feel goodness and warmth all around you. Things happen for a reason, and I believe that now.

I like the person that I have become since that day last June and I look forward to continuing to grow and sharing the great news with anyone who will listen. Baptism for me is my chance to go public with my belief in Christ as my Redeemer and Savior and my promise to Him to continue to prove my love for Him, not only in my words, but in my actions.

Erin Macheski

I grew up in another church but quickly found myself uncomfortable with the denomination. One of my cousins leads in one denomination, and another leads a different denomination! So I spent the last year of my life extremely depressed.

So depressed, in fact, I gained 30 pounds and did nothing but drink and lie around in bed feeling sorry for myself. I was lost, very lost. I was having interpersonal problems with my family and felt isolated from everyone. I had my heart broken, and had moved home from El Paso, Texas, over a year ago.

After a heavy night of drinking, I decided I was done with the drinking ... I was done making poor decisions! I was tired of meeting the wrong type of men in my life. I was tired of ALLOWING myself to lead this type of life! So I put down the bottle, now 90 days sober, and decided it was time to get back involved with the church. My job as a manager at a local pizza store familiarized me with Ryan, the youth pastor, as we deliver pizza to his home on occasion. I can remember thinking how kind Ryan was and thought I would check out the church and well now here I am! I have been coming for a few months and I’ll tell ya the first couple weeks I did nothing but cry ,cry, cry in church. I was so down on life and so down on myself! This church has played an essential role in my finding true happiness! My spirit was down on the ground but now God has lifted me up and wrapped His arms around me and I feel great! I have turned my whole life around in just a few short months and I have found an inner peace I never knew could exist. I have battled bipolar disorder and anxiety to the point of full-fledged panic attacks my whole life, and now I have not suffered since I have given my heart to the Lord. Every day is a struggle to do the right thing, to do what Jesus would do... But I find I am proud of myself for the first time in my life and I owe it all to the Lord Almighty! I am truly lifted up and living differently! I feel so welcomed in this church and have found such wonderful people here! I am truly blessed to be a part of this church – you all do such wonderful work. You have brought me back to God and have helped me to be a better person! Thank you Fellowship Church!

Victoria Bleiler

Sometimes, the steepest falls we take in life are accompanied by the most uplifting experiences. This story begins at an end. After a little over a year of marriage, and shortly after the birth of my son, my unfaithful husband became careless with concealing his antics. He was never home, and stopped providing for my son and me. My life became a series of schedules, set in place to keep my scattered mind and weary body occupied. Wake up, feed baby, feed dogs, work, feed baby, feed dogs, find something for dinner, clean, bathe baby, feed baby, rock baby to sleep, sleep, wake up… Some days I would even keep the baby in bed with me all day and we would just lie there together, nodding in and out of restless sleep. My love for my son gave me the strength to do what I knew I had to do. I filed for divorce and my son and I moved in with my sister and her family. Although I knew I had the love and support of my family, I felt so alone surrounded by their successful marriages. I felt myself becoming more and more reclusive; hiding from the rest of the world in the borrowed shelter of a room I shared with my son.

My illusory marriage had long since taken complete control of my social life, and in my husband's absence, I was hungry for reconnection in a big way. I needed to be around people. I started spending time with old friends, assigning myself two days a month to spend with them or at the bar attempting to meet new people. In this technological era, MySpace became a window to the world of friendship for me. While browsing, I came across a particular old friend, Nick McGowan, and curiosity overwhelmed me. I sent a message and waited to hear back. His response was an entirely unexpected one. In the five or six years we had been out of touch, he had gone from being an angst-ridden teenager to a man of immense faith. I didn’t really think we’d find common ground on which to rebuild our idle friendship, but over the next couple of weeks, we talked nightly through instant messaging and text messaging, sharing our life experiences. The positivity he possessed! For every question I had, he had either the answer, or a way for me to find it. He had a way of making me feel like anything was possible. I wanted to better my situation, so I asked him if he knew of any support groups for single mothers. After a couple of days, he got back to me with information on a bible study at Fellowship. There were no words to describe my skepticism. It was the farthest thing from what I was looking for. I toyed with the idea of going, but really put no merit into it. My decision to attend was based on a coin-toss of sorts. I e-mailed the study leader, Nancy Gifford, to see if it would be ok for me to bring my son, half expecting her to say no. I was so very wrong. Not only was it just fine for me to bring Evan, Nancy’s response was so warm-hearted and there was a kind of comforting kinship in the way she confided in me that it was her first time leading a group study and she was nervous. I felt welcomed into someone else’s life, and I didn’t want to betray that. I decided to go, and invited a friend along to share the experience with me.

The first study was March 26^th at 7pm. My friend and I got lost and didn’t get there until 7:30, but Nancy still greeted us at the door. She led us back to the rest of the group and began the study. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t somewhat uncomfortable. Out of respect for people of faith, I never set foot in a church unless I absolutely had to for such things as a funeral or wedding. I didn’t know if I believed in God, but by no means was I about to disrespect those who did. Although it wasn’t anything like I had expected it to be, it was a place of worship and praise. Quite honestly, I felt like I had no business being there, but somehow, I felt so at ease. There was something about the strength the women seemed to have; derived from faith and hope; and it drew me in. It seemed as though I was among old friends, the kind that know you better than you know yourself, especially Nancy.

The next week, Nick and I finally got together. I was in total awe of his complete transformation. No longer was I friends with this kid who hated just about everything and everyone… I was friends with a man who had nothing but compassion and understanding for all the wrongs in the world; a completely unbiased individual with nothing derogatory to say about anything in the three hours that we spent together. We talked about the lessons we learned from our pasts, the hopes and plans we had for our futures, and everything in between. It was so refreshing to be around someone who thought tomorrow held more worth than just being one day closer to the weekend. By the time we parted, I was looking so forward to seeing him again, so I attended church that Sunday for the first time in 16 years. I was not expecting John’s laid-back sermons or the band’s boundless energy. It was awesome in every sense of the word. There was a big part of me that wanted to be part of it all, but I could feel myself holding back.

After that Sunday, Nick and I started spending a lot more time together. He was committed to helping me find my way in life and make the best hand out of the cards on the table. I felt that I needed to get out of my sister’s house and make a semi-normal life for both Evan and I. Nick came over almost every night to help me work out a budget, search for apartments, and tap into resources for other means of income. He reminded me in my most trying times that anything was possible, and I could do whatever it was I put my mind to doing. I was beyond grateful to him for everything he had done and continued to do for me. I began to not only to deeply appreciate and love the person he had become through his doubtless faith, but also to admire the way he could make so much happen with so little effort. He had this energy about him that made me want to be a better person. I quit smoking and drinking. I kept attending the bible studies and the Sunday services. I felt like a better mother, daughter, sister, and friend. One by one, the goals I was working towards became reality. I found a roommate, an apartment, and childcare. Inspired by hope, I started going to church with Nick early in the morning, and found my own ways to serve. We were seeing signs together in every aspect of our lives, especially at church. Things that I had never understood were becoming so clear to me. Because of this, I allowed Nick to slowly lead me deeper into his world of faith. He showed me ways to make my peace with God, accept forgiveness, and open my heart and mind to being “stretched.” The more I learned from Nick, the more I realized that God was always in my life and had always provided for me, even in those desperate times. We began praying together every day and striving to live our lives the way God wanted us to.

It wasn’t until Nick and I started reading “The Purpose Driven Life” together that I realized I have been able to make all these changes in my life that I had never been strong enough to make before because I am no longer living for myself. I am living for God. Within the church, I have found faith. With this faith, I will find my life. Even now, days away from baptism, I’m still learning and growing immeasurably in Christianity. I’m so excited to see what God’s plan is for me. This story will end at a beginning for me on Sunday: the beginning of my journey with Christ.

Paul Leahan

I was born and raised in another denomination and went to their school for 12 years. I learned a lot about God and Jesus through going to church and school but the church never talked about true salvation. After graduating from high school, I stopped going to church because I wasn't getting anything out of it. I started searching for other churches and in 1995 started to go to another local church. It was here I learned about true salvation and being born again. I thought I was saved, but did not know for sure. On Mar 7, 1997, I had a counseling meeting with two counselors at church to discuss some personal problems but also I wanted to talk about my salvation. The counselors talked about true salvation and how God gives you a new heart and takes the stony heart out, as in Ezekiel 36:26.

They explained simple truth of being born again by faith and repentance to God. I got down on my knees and prayed a prayer of repentance and accepted Jesus into my heart and life. Tears streamed out of me as I felt the weight of my sin come off me and received Jesus' spirit in me. It was the greatest day in my life and I know for sure now that I am saved and going to heaven some day.

Anna-Jeanne Leahan

One day I went into church. I heard that today you could accept Jesus as your Savior. So I wanted to get saved. So I repeated what the leader said. I felt so happy when I got saved. The date when I got saved was April 17, 2006. Now I know that I'm going to heaven.

John Leahan