For the 20 years that I have been alive, I’ve grown up in the same church. I have learned so much and I’ve met some incredible people. I’ve grown in my relationship with God and I have had some of the best mentors a girl could ask for.
It started out nursery style. Usually, the kids that you start off in diapers with, will remain your friends for a lot of your life. They’re the ones that you grow up with. The ones that you go on mission trips with, to church camps, and youth group events. They’re the ones who are in your small groups and who will pray for you and check in on you throughout the week.They're also the ones that you're able to pick back up with once things have changed but somehow it almost seems like nothing has changed at all.
Along the way I have had the best mentors a girl could ask for. I have been blessed to go to a church that truly believes in the spiritual development of our youth. Growing up in a kids program that created an engaging atmosphere for kiddos was the best. Moving into the dreaded junior high and high school years, I had a youth pastor who went above and beyond to meet the needs of our teens. I firmly believe because of the involvement that I had in my youth group, I was able to grow more as a person and more as a follower of Christ because of the influence that leaders and mentors had on me. Those leaders who have reached out to me or wished me luck before a big test. The ones who have been willing to take time out of their personal lives to hang out with our small group or to grab lunch after church. These are people who have impacted my life more than they know.
I’m a big believer in service. Especially with it comes to serving God. We only have one job on this earth. And that is to honor and serve God by using our gifts to glorify Him and then sharing His word with the world. My parents have always served in small ways at our church so I have grown up watching them. Having that influence encouraged me to serve in as many ways as I could too. Having the largest influence on my teen years, I knew I wanted to serve as a small group leader for teen girls. This has been one of the greatest experiences I have had. Watching these young ladies continually grow into God fearing women has been life changing. They have blessed me more than I could ever bless them.
Growing up in the same church I have been there through many of the transitions. Transitions between pastors, music, size of our congregation, name changes, new buildings, and new ideas. We are all about “doing whatever it takes to reach our community for Christ”, and this is something we’ve always stayed true to. God has used our church in incredible ways and it has been a blessing to see the growth and development throughout the years. I am ecstatic to continue serving such a forgiving, merciful, and loving God in a place that has always felt like home.
