Katie was very depressed and cutting herself.  She was suffering from lack of self-esteem and feelings of condemnation stemming from divorced parents and an alcoholic father.  With little or no positive direction, this led her to make choices that might have scarred her for the rest of her life.

Katie thought no one cared until a friend took her on a YFC Campus Life outing.  Going to Campus Life was the first step in a series of caring encounters with YFC staff, volunteers and her peers.  This brought Katie to the realization that her greatest problem was separation from the only One who could make her whole.

Today, Katie has exchanged cutting herself for a newfound faith in Jesus.  Because He cares, she discovered the love that took Him from the cradle to the cross, and now she has become a powerful force for change in her family, among her peers and now, even in church.

“What a relief, I can cast my cares on Him.”

Corey was in a gang at the age of 12.  Pursued by police in a chase through city expressways and streets, he was caught and put in jail for drug sales at age 17.  Life in the fast lane had come to a screeching halt. 

Corey thought no one cared until God chased him down; in the cook county jail, he met up with the YFC Juvenile Justice team and heard that God was in pursuit of him.  Corey read Psalm 139:7 – “I can never escape from the Spirit! I can never get away from your presence!”

This was a chase where he couldn't outrun his pursuer.  He decided to quit trying.  With a JJM staffer, he asked Christ to forgive him, make him a new man and a better father.

"I've been in two big chases in my life.  The one with the cops was a mess that I lost -- big time.  But the one with God I won -- because He doesn't give up.  Hey, look out, He just might be on your trail."

How many more . . .