I was born into a Christian home... I guess back then both my parents were really devoted. I was sent to a Christian school for grades 1-3, but it cost too much to go there from the town we lived in so I was put into the town's public school in grade 4. I slowly stopped attending the Church in the town, and we moved to St.Albert where my mom took us to church just a few more times to see if we'd like that church. We didn't, got judged pretty quick, but thats ok everyone grows in their faith and sometimes they make mistakes.
My parents never forced me to go when they realized Sunday mornings, I was apparently "too tired to wake up", when I think I'd usually wake up earlier. So I stopped going completely.
Fast forward, messed up big time in Highschool with drugs / drinking / illegal activity (the intermediate getting people to their drugs, and drugs to the people). Was a compulsive liar throughout my schooling years, it was pretty evident but I was getting better at concealing it all. After highschool got more heavily into drinking, drinking after school at the college bar.
During college I started to work for a local metal (had all styles of music actually) club on Whyte Avenue. Got another job working at a casino, and continued to smoke a pack a day of Export A green. I was blessed out of my addiction to smoking and drinking when I got a motorcylce which a day's gas cost just as much as smokes, and I couldn't drink and drive or smoke and ride so I willingly gave them up. I got out of the bar scene after a bad experience that I believe God was using as a wake up call of how quickly things could go wrong. I was misdiagnosed with a crazy disease that would kill me if I had it, and everything had aligned with how I would have gotten it (being bit by a person at the bar while I was trying to resolve a conflict) went for a blood test afterwards and when I got sick weeks later, they told me I had this disease. It was pretty terrible, I thought that I wouldn't be able to see my friends anymore and have to live apart from my family in fear of them getting it... I had to mentally separate myself from my goals/ambitions/and everyone I loved... my Mom was praying for me and the next morning the doctor came in and said they messed up on the diagnosis. And so went back into drinking occasionally and just messing around on my motorcycle (just being a stupid on it).
I came on this nexopia site and found a Christian thread, and cause of my youth, I supposed that I knew everything there was to do with Christianity. A brother showed patience (and another prayed with me on the phone .. and one invited me to Church. In the church I prayed for discipline concerning my life, and my biking crazy and not getting another job or signing up for school. I believe it was that night that second gear drive and driven snapped within my transmission (the gears are sitting in front of me right now, look at the chunk taken out of the left one in the pic). I was confined at home, talking to the guys who encouraged me in Christ.
So then I got to reading the Bible, and came across the verse James 1:5 and took God up on the offer, which He answered pretty quick. For about 6 months after that I was being given wisdom and revelations about being a Christian, and learning more and more about God. I used to read the Bible until 3 or 4 am in the morning because I was 'hungry' to know more of what was written, and I was understanding it now, whereas before I didn't understand it barely at all (like a foreign language, when really it was just a foreign life). When I didn't know much knowledge to share with one of my friends that was watching me change, watching me loose interest in things that are sinful, I just repeatably just told her to "ask God," until one night she really did. She was hurt from things that a x-bf was doing and she asked God for help, which God immediately came in like a flood with peace and joy that she couldn't explain (like He had just been waiting for her to ask humbly).... the next time I saw her she asked if she could come to church. So God also provided me a means to get to church, as I was without transportation and my friend (now sister in faith) drove me to go to church with her.

I remember when I used to go to the bars and get hammered, and then we would retreat for the night and crash at my friend's house, who happened to be a Muslim. For awhile before we would retreat to sleep, we would make tea and talk about God in the living room. I had some knowledge from when I was growing up, and he was raised as a Muslim. I remember I felt guilty for talking about God when we were drunk, cause no matter if I knew that God was real (He confirmed this knowledge to me, and I always knew He was real, I always remember a prayer that was distinctly answered right after praying it when I was younger), I was really showing by my action that I wasn't really knowing Him. I think the guilt also helped in the decision to seek more after God..... despite how close of friends I was with this person, what we did with our time was sin. We would constantly be going out drinking, and I distanced myself away from this person for a time as I became more devoted to Jesus. Realizing what I shared with a handful of people was sin, I scaled back on the friends that I had... and prayed to God for new ones. It was surprising how quickly the answer came... I seemed to be running into people from when I was growing up (which was from another town altogether) that had lived their own lives and then came back to Jesus Christ as they got older. They would share what had happened in their life and what changed etc and how God was working in their lives today.

So after it being a while since coming to faith in Jesus, and my interests were changed and the things that I wanted to do changed quite a bit (seeing as I now knew I was created for a purpose). I was seeking after God, and there is a verse that says "seek first the kingdom of God and all these things will be alloted to you". Well I was seeking after God, and things were just being alloted to me. I prayed for a car, I wanted a car that I couldn't be prideful over and wouldn't brag about. Well I asked specifically for a Ford Festiva in prayer. It was about a week later I think that I came home and there was a white Ford Festiva sitting my garage... I went inside the house and asked my Dad how it got there... he said "neighbor was selling his car, and he couldn't sell it so he gave it to me, and I'm giving it to you". I thought that was interesting, but the car wouldn't start, it had an ignition problem. I was a bit confused as to why this was going on, I mean this was exactly the car that I prayed for and it was here sitting in my garage. I came home one night and looked at the car, knowing that I would be needing a car for transportation as winter was soon approaching (and the bike which was since fixed after my lesson had been learned, wouldn't be drivable in the winter). I looked at the car and said "ok God, you blatantly answered my prayer, but if you want to give me something better, go for it". The next day I come home and there is a blue tempo sitting in my garage ( I previously had a topaz when I was 17 and liked the size etc).. I leaned into the car and saw that it had only 92,000km on it, a full stereo, and there were two sets of tires and rims that were with it). This was October 12th last year that I started driving the blue car... but I didn't have a job. God was continually providing for me. I would constantly be given money for gas, and then when Valentines and Christmas came around a random cheque would show up at the house for me just after I pray for it. (Just recently this happened twice in a row, where I got another cheque from a previous employer which I went to twice telling them that I think they're overpaying me by over a thousand dollars which they assured me they were not.... to when I was running low on funds again and prayed for a bit more to do good with and immediately there was a cheque on the table for me again.) I know that some people may have doubts about this, but I must say that its far too opportune to be without work from Oct 12 all the way till summer, and have an income from differing sources. Even today since summer till now, money (and most recently instruments) have been coming in. Seek first the Kingdom of God, and all these things will be alloted to you. God knows what we need and when we need it... we don't even need to bother ourselves in seeking it, we can put Him first and it will all come as we need.

Jeremiah 29:11
11For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.
12Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you.
13And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.

James 1:5

I can share a ton of the prayers that I get answered etc, but the main thing is to get to know Jesus Christ. There are 'benefits' to that relationship, I'm sharing them here just to show that He does a better job at taking care of us than we do for ourselves... and that He deserves our trust. God delights in showing steadfast love, the good Father.

Jeremiah 9:23-24
23Thus says the LORD: "Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, 24but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD."

I used to be on top of the world... but even from there I couldn't reach to get off it.

1A Knowledge puffs up, wisdom is waiting on the Lord on when to use it.
1B Don't give wisdom to fools, they'll stomp on it and turn on you. Pigs and pearls.Matthew 7:6 It is sometimes more profitable to withold wisdom from one who cannot contain it, small turns of a rudder can cause large ships to collide, avoid those reckless in their speech.
2 If you don't want a fire, stop playing with matches ~ Salt water only makes you more thirsty, its better to avoid it.
3 Be careful of those with new hammers, to them everything looks like a nail. (Sometimes those being equiped turn to work on their co-workers, I do not believe God gives anyone a ministry of only correction)
4 Let your leaders work over you without grumbling. Share with them the joy of the fruit they helped labor in you to produce.
5 Those who love their children, discipline them.
6A The second wisest man Solomon, fell away from the Lord. He did not take heed to instruction. All His wisdom did not gain Him any closer relationship.
6B To know God, it takes a move of the heart. He wants a loving relationship, not a buisness relationship. You can spend your lifetime trying to wrap your head around God, with no success.
7 All religions tell you to fall into their ordership with a promise of God or nirvana at the end of them... they all lie. God made us to know Him, and we can know Him now in a relationship.
8 Its impossible to be obedient when all you have known is disobedience. (Some who are evangelical need to know that without love they are wasting their time, a ministry of correction encourages and interests noone)
9 A ton of arguements happen between Christians, because we're guilty of looking for Judas much of the time instead of Jesus

Your comfort is your religion

Denominations
A religoius mindset has a symptom of wanting to have a "safety net" for eternal life apart from the leadership of Christ Himself. They want to hide behind their own righteousness claiming that it is good enough, they are "correct" enough for heaven even if their actions (divisions) are saying otherwise. They can have as many plausible arguments they want (John 5:39-42), but the true wisdom and knowledge are in Christ and His leadership (Colossians 2:3). Jesus also never said we would know people by their doctrinal statements or by which church they attatch their identity with, but rather by their fruits (Matthew 7:20).