Although I was homeschooled in a Christian home and led a strict moral life, I did not have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. While in college, God began drawing me closer to Him and I was convicted of the fact that I was a hypocrite. I prayed to the Lord to have mercy on me, and to save me. God captured my heart through months of analyzing the Scriptures and testing them against what I had observed in the world. God showed His grace to me by opening my eyes to my disobedience to Him, and I confessed my sins and asked God to take control of my life and show me how to serve and honor Him.

God blessed my prayers and gave me a desire to search the Scriptures diligently and to forsake the worldly influences of college and friends and to follow Him. I started learning about reformed theology, and the more I learned, the more excited I became over God's Sovereignty and that He had chosen me to be His own. My Christian walk with the Lord is the strongest it's ever been in my life. I have commited my life to do the Lord's will, whatever that is for me here on this earth.

The Doctrines of Grace have COMPLETELY changed my life around! Until my "true salvation" in college, I did not know very much about theology at all and I had no interest to debate such things. However, as God led me through circumstances that forced me to seek the Scriptures out diligently, whether it was from Charismatic Christian friends telling me that it was my fault that my brother died because we didn't have enough faith or whether it was an atheist asking why would anyone want to believe in a God that would allow such horrible things to happen here on earth, God continued to drive me to His Word to seek His Truth. The result was amazement at God's complete and absolute sovereignty. All the false doctrine that I'd been inundated with through years of attending luke-warm churches was replaced by an understanding of the Calvinistic TULIP. It was rock solid, Scripture-breathed doctrine. Finally all the guilt and doubt that I'd had over my brother's death and wondering if any lack of faith on my part could have prevented it fell off my shoulders. The day I came across this doctrine, I vividly remember tears of immense joy at finally understanding the truth. At that moment I identified with Christian in Pilgrim's Progress when he lost his burden at the cross. Hallelujah!

Yes and no - while I strive to be content with where God has me right now, He has given me a heart to have a family. God has given me a strong desire to become a wife and mother. I was trained to be a keeper of the home, and I feel that the family is the highest calling to ministry one can have.

This is awkward because it really comes across as bragging about myself. Upon asking family and friends, this is what they would have me put:

Loyal

Hard working

Selfless

Responsible

My Lord and Savior's grace to save me!

My family - they are my life-line!

My church family and Christian friends near and far who have encouraged me in my walk with the Lord.

Oh, and I really am very thankful for my Bible, but I know the question said only three, but I'm sure it will be allowed. :D

The character and personality traits I appreciate most in others are:

A sincere heart for God - biggest plus!

Humility - pride is just a big turn-off in anyone.

Strong work ethics

Manners - someone's manners or the lack thereof really can tell much about a person I think

Cheerfulness even through trials

The willingness and ability to lead when no one else will, someone who can stand alone especially in a situation where God's principles demand it of you, that is the mark of a true man or woman of God. I am reminded of Eric Liddell when he refused to compromise God's standards for the Sabbath by not running in the Olympics.

I have never been married, but as far as "relationships" I have never dated or been courted by anyone. There have been a handful who have asked for courtship, but the reasons for declining was usually because there was either no attraction on my part or there were major differences of opinion on theology, wives being keepers of the home, who should be the spiritual leader of the home, complementarianism, homeschooling, etc.

Having said that, I realize that I should state that I am a 5-Point Calvinist, I believe that women should be keepers of the home according to Scripture Titus 2:3-5 A wife is to be a "helpmeet" in any way she can to help aide her husbands with whatever talents the Lord has given her. I would strongly desire my children to be homeschooled and cannot compromise on this point. I believe that Scripture is very explicit when it says that the husband should be the spiritual head of the home. Eph. 5:22-33

My parents desire me to be married almost as much as I desire it, and their role is to help guide and counsel along the way in order to protect both the young man and myself. A young man would have to be willing to obtain my parents' permission in order to get to know me better.

"You came to see a race today. To see someone win. It happened to be me. But I want you to do more than just watch a race. I want you to take part in it. I want to compare faith to running in a race. It's hard. It requires concentration of will, energy of soul. You experience elation when the winner breaks the tape - especially if you've got a bet on it. But how long does that last? You go home. Maybe you're dinner's burnt. Maybe you haven't got a job. So who am I to say, "Believe, have faith," in the face of life's realities? I would like to give you something more permanent, but I can only point the way. I have no formula for winning the race. Everyone runs in her own way, or his own way. And where does the power come from, to see the race to its end? From within. Jesus said, "Behold, the Kingdom of God is within you. If with all your hearts, you truly seek me, you shall ever surely find me." If you commit yourself to the love of Christ, then that is how you run a straight race." ~Eric Liddell from the movie Chariots of Fire

"God made countries, God makes kings, and the rules by which they govern. And those rules say that the Sabbath is His. And I for one intend to keep it that way." ~Eric Liddell from the movie Chariots of Fire

"Be Thou My Vision, Oh Lord of My Heart. Naught be all else to me save that thou art! Thou my

Caleb Holt: Marriage isn't fireproof.
Michael Simmons: Fireproof doesn't mean the fire will never come. It means when the fire comes that you will be able to withstand it. ~The movie Fireproof

Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;
Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art.
Thou my best Thought, by day or by night,
Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.

Be Thou my Wisdom, and Thou my true Word;
I ever with Thee and Thou with me, Lord;
Thou my great Father, I Thy true son;
Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee one.