BVOV Magazine 2013 - present

They seemed to be trying to provoke her. Christina told her mother what was happening, and together they addressed the school's administration. The students were asked to apologize. Some had to be forced to do so. Christina felt so ostracized and alone, she dreaded going to school. She almost despaired of life. Darkness Before the Dawn "I never expected to experience racism or be ostracized at a Christian school," says Christina. "I had attended Christian schools since preschool, which were also more diverse. But now, the only friends who accepted me were international students at the school. "I also realized that although it was a Christian school, they had a diŠerent perspective of God in general. I'd been taught that God is kind and loving; that He is our Father, Friend and Redeemer. I began to wonder if this school even believed in the devil, because they taught that God causes bad things to happen to us. Confused and frustrated, Christina confronted the school counselor about transferring to a public school. "I thought there would be more diversity there," she said. "I also hoped to blend in with the crowd. My counselor insisted that going to a public school wouldn't help. I had to face my junior and senior years at a school where I was being rejected, if not targeted. It was a miserable experience." To this day, Christina never knew why she was suddenly treated like an outcast. "I always wondered if it stemmed from jealousy. I was an excellent student. I'd been one of four middle school valedictorians. That theory seemed to have been validated when, for the first time in the school's history, a new policy regarding valedictorians was adopted. "No one could be considered for valedictorian unless they'd been at the school all four of their high school years," said Christina. "It was no longer enough to have the highest grade-point average. "The thing that helped me to get through those years was what I'd learned through KCM," Christina remembers. Christina was born while her family was stationed in Germany. Her parents had become born again while attending Crenshaw Christian Center while living in Southern California. It was while in California that the family had become familiar with Kenneth Copeland Ministries. "My mother had purchased a package of materials from KCM through an ad she saw in the Believer's Voice of Victory magazine," Christina remembers. "It had a lullaby tape and some Superkid tapes. She also ordered "The Candy Store" videos, which was part of a preschool program for kids from Gospel Bill. I learned my ABCs and numbers, got saved and started reading early through them." A Closer Walk While living in California and attending her uncle's church, Christina got water baptized. Later, her uncle "led me to be baptized in the Holy Spirit and to speak in tongues," Christina said. When her parents divorced a short time later, Christina remained with her mother. In 1998, she and her mother attended KCM's West Coast Believers' Convention in Anaheim, Calif. There, Christina got her first taste of what it was like to attend a Superkids service in person. "Going to the Superkids services was one of my favorite things. I enjoyed being around other kids who loved the Lord," she says. "My favorite part was 'Get Up and Dance.' I liked the games and cooking segments. I loved Commander Kellie, Commander Dana, Commander Jenni and Commander Linda. They taught us to hear God's voice. "I still remember the first time I heard the Lord tell me He loved me. That early training 1 8 : B V O V AUG READ THROUGH THE BIBLE Old Testament New Testament Thu 1 2 Chr. 18:1-20:19 2 Cor. 5 Fri 2 2 Chr. 20:20-23:11 2 Cor. 6 Sat 3 2 Chr. 23:12-25:28 Sun 4 Ps. 90-92; Prov. 19:18-29 Mon 5 2 Chr. 26-28 2 Cor. 7 Tue 6 2 Chr. 29-30 2 Cor. 8 Wed 7 2 Chr. 31:1-33:9 2 Cor. 9 Thu 8 2 Chr. 33:10-35:9 2 Cor. 10 Fri 9 2 Chr. 35:10-Ez. 1:11 2 Cor. 11 Sat 10 Ezra 2 Sun 11 Ps. 93-96; Prov. 20:1-15 Mon 12 Ezra 3:1-6:12 2 Cor. 12 Tue 13 Ezra 6:13-8:23 2 Cor. 13 Wed 14 Ezra 8:24-10:44 Gal. 1 Thu 15 Neh. 1-3 Gal. 2 Fri 16 Neh. 4-6 Gal. 3 Sat 17 Neh. 7:1-65 Sun 18 Ps. 97-101; Prov. 20:16-30 Mon 19 Neh. 7:66-9:38 Gal. 4 Tue 20 Neh. 10:1-11:24 Gal.5 Wed 21 Neh. 11:25-12:47 Gal. 6 Thu 22 Neh. 13-Est. 2:18 Eph. 1 Fri 23 Est. 2:19-6:14 Eph. 2 Sat 24 Est. 7-10 Sun 25 Ps. 102-103; Prov. 21:1-15 Mon 26 Job 1-3 Eph. 3 Tue 27 Job 4:1-6:13 Eph. 4 Wed 28 Job 6:14-8:22 Eph. 5 Thu 29 Job 9-10 Eph. 6 Fri 30 Job 11:1-13:19 Phil. 1 Sat 31 Job 13:20-15:35

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