Corn Dogs to Jesus - Jessica’s Testimony to Faith - Entry by Jessica Wright

I was 22 years old in 2006, and instead of going to college one day, I suddenly craved a corn dog in Seattle. On a whim, I took the Seneca exit—an exit I usually wouldn’t take. As I drove down, I glanced to the right and saw someone with the same eyes as mine. Instantly, I remembered a dream I had the night before, where my dad had died.

It was my dad. We had the same eyes, but otherwise, he looked completely different—frail and sickly. Something deep inside told me to let this “stranger” of a father into my car and convince him to get a corn dog with me. When he looked at me, he didn’t recognize me at all. Instead, he smiled a missing-tooth grin, thinking I was some random girl flirting with him.

We drove down to Pike Place Market, and I called my mom. I told her I’d found Dad and that he wasn’t just the alcoholic we always thought he was—there was more to the story. His shirt had old bird poop on the back, and he looked so disheveled. My mom told me about a Christian program called Cross Discipleship that helps men get sober. She asked me to bring him back to Tacoma, where I lived, so she could help him get into the program.

I made up an excuse to get him to Tacoma. Once we got there, he admitted to me that he’d been addicted to heroin for some time and that he also had Hepatitis C.

The chances of me finding my dad in Seattle that day were nearly impossible. The city’s population at the time was about 583,000. The odds that I would randomly crave a corn dog—a food I hadn’t had in years—and take that specific exit were almost zero. I mean, the chance must have been like 0.000001%.

I was broke back then. Gas money was hard to come by, and I didn’t have many days off work. Skipping college for this was a huge gamble, and I felt so nervous to be alone with him. But something told me to do it.

This is why I believe in Jesus. Testimonies matter. Jesus saved my dad’s life, and now he’s sober and living his best life. My faith is stronger than ever, and this experience led me to eventually shift to a Christian counseling practice.

I ask you to ponder this: What is your testimony? Share it with others! You never know how your story might change someone else’s life.