Mallory Grace Tingen, a sophomore at the University of South Carolina, recently took the important step of being baptized. Mallory had always believed in Christ, but it wasn’t until late middle school and early high school that she fully embraced the Gospel.

“Since then, my life has been full of many blessings,” she says.

Mallory had been thinking about getting baptized for a long time but wanted to wait until she felt fully ready. However, she kept hearing more and more about it in her daily life, and she took that as a sign that it was the right time.

For Mallory, baptism is important because it is a way to publicly profess faith in Christ and to formally commit oneself to Christ and His people. “To me, baptism means professing my love for Christ in front of the people I love and taking the next step in my walk with Christ,” she explains.

Ariana Besse, a freshman at the University of South Carolina, recently decided to follow Jesus and take the next step with believer’s baptism alongside her friend Mallory. Before college, Ariana knew of Christ but didn’t fully commit to a relationship with him.

Shandon Baptist Church and the people she’s met there helped change her point of view, and from there, she began to have a relationship and grow to know Jesus. After having a conversation with one of her mentors in the church, Ariana realized it was important to take the next step with believer’s baptism.

“I realized I needed Christ when I was starting out college because I knew I couldn’t do it alone, especially being so far from home. Christ has changed my life, showing me how we can live through Him in our everyday life. Christ has given me a purpose and direction in my life,” Ariana says.

For Ariana, baptism is a public testimony to her church family, allowing her to become a part of something bigger than herself. “Baptism means showing my faith in Jesus and committing Jesus to be my savior,” she explains.

We see a day where every life is saturated and transformed by the hope of the Gospel. Visit scbaptist.org/share for more details.