One of the most liberating truths I’ve learned in my life is this: If someone finds their relationship with God to be burdensome or anxiety-inducing, their picture of God is likely inaccurate.
Trygve is a young man from Norway who recently came to this realization. He went from being a nominal Christian who found religion quite dissatisfying, and whose only goal was to become a professional freestyle skier, to becoming a passionate follower of Jesus who is now dedicating his life to ministry. And people like you have played a significant role in his transformation.
Most Christians Trygve met seemed unhappy, as though religion were a necessary evil, like taxes.
Though Trygve was raised a Christian, faith felt like a cultural trapping. There were moments when he heard the Spirit speaking at camp or other church events. Ultimately, though, faith seemed to boil down to a massive list of rules he wasn’t capable of keeping. Most Christians he met seemed unhappy, as though religion were a necessary evil, like taxes.
After Trygve finished school, he planned to move to a ski town so he could pursue life on the slopes. In 2024, though, when another skier ran into him, he suffered a serious concussion. During his months-long recovery, disappointment buried him like an avalanche. What was he supposed to do now? Why would God take away the thing he loved?
As summer approached, he heard that a couple of friends were planning to attend a program called ARISE Finland in the fall. Trygve couldn’t convince himself that God wasn’t real. So, he decided to give Him a chance by applying to ARISE.
The first week, Trygve was convinced he didn’t belong. He’d spent his summer playing video games, not reading Scripture and praying, like everyone else apparently had.
But as the program progressed and the teachers expounded on God’s love in the biblical narrative, he began to wonder: Is real faith not a burden? What if God lifts burdens? Could the Bible reveal what our lives mean?
Trygve felt a tug-of-war inside him between the hope that this picture of God was true and his previous beliefs. This wrestling culminated one morning when he went out into the woods on campus to pray:
“God, I see this joy You want to give, this new life You promised. I want to believe You're out there, but unless I see You working in my own life and heart, I don’t know if I can.”
Trygve began to wonder: Is real faith not a burden? What if God lifts burdens?
Immediately after, Trygve was flooded with a peace he’d never felt before. It was a turning point, and the rest of the program continued to build on it. He hasn’t looked back since.
Trygve’s picture of God has been transformed. He plans to spend his life doing ministry because he wants to help others experience the true joy and peace he’s found in God. He is currently working as the outreach coordinator’s assistant at ARISE Finland.
It’s thanks to the generosity of people like you that ARISE Finland exists and young adults like Trygve can discover the beauty of God’s character. That support allows us to teach at ARISE, award worthy students scholarships, and so much more. If you’d like to help impact more people like Trygve, please consider partnering with us financially.
From the bottom of our hearts, thank you!
Ty Gibson
Ty is a speaker/director of Light Bearers. A passionate communicator with a message that opens minds and moves hearts, Ty teaches on a variety of topics, emphasizing God’s unfailing love as the central theme of the Bible. Ty and his wife Sue have three adult children and two grandsons.
