I was raised in a Catholic family, although I wouldn't say religion has ever been the focal point of my life either by personal choice or familial habits. So when one of my younger cousins asked me to be her confirmation sponsor, I was a little (okay, a lot) surprised. Sponsors serve as a role model and mentor for their candidates and more often than not a grandparent or older adult is chosen, someone who has lived a lot of life and seems to have it pretty well figured out. How was I, a senior in high school at the time, supposed to guide her in the faith when I was still trying to find it on my own?! Regardless of any insecurities I felt however, I made it my goal from that point forward to be the best example for her that I could be.

Toward the end of my high school career I participated in a small group bible study with a few girls from school, and upon finishing I thought it would be a great idea to go through the study with my cousin too. She will be a freshman this fall, moving from a private Catholic school to public school, and I felt a change that large warranted some extra guidance beforehand. The study is called Lies Young Women Believe and covers, you guessed it, the lies about life and faith that young women are likely to believe resulting from too much society and too little God.

The experience I've had over the past few months mentoring my cousin has been an incredible blessing in my life, strengthening both our relationship and our faith. What I've discovered over the course of the study, much to my surprise, is that while the ultimate goal was to teach her, I've learned quite a lot myself along the way as well...

I learned how to communicate with people younger than myself, not "dumbing it down" but rather using context that is relatable to their lives and maturity level. In grade school I was never friends with people four years younger than me, so at first it was a challenge figuring out how to explain what made sense in my head to her in a way that made sense in hers. I had to remember that she hasn't been exposed to the same things I have, and that I've grown a lot in the past four years, a time that she is just beginning.

I learned that through explaining God's Truths to her, suddenly everything made a hundred times more sense to me. People always say that teaching the information is the best way to learn it, and they are definitely right! Being able to go through this study a second time allowed me to solidify what it says about God, about faith, and about how to genuinely live a holy life.

I learned that praying together is better than praying alone. Through our discussion of weakness and potential areas of sin, I was able to realize that we all struggle in different ways and have faults unique to each of us. In this group setting my own offenses were brought to the forefront of my mind, but I was able to share them with her and both give and feel the comfort of mutual prayers for forgiveness.

I learned to follow my instincts. I've always been fairly shy about sharing my feelings and opinions, definitely never one to randomly start something new on my own without the approval or guidance of someone else. However, choosing to connect with my cousin through this study and witnessing its benefits in both of our lives has given me greater confidence for the future. When creative ideas pop into my head I won't be as scared of what people will think, worry about whether or not the idea is a good one, or if I can pull it off. I am an intelligent young woman and have nothing to fear through being myself.

I learned to value time spent with family. Not that I didn't before, but beyond my immediate family I haven't really ever had close relationships with my extended family. While most of the time my cousin and I spent together was within the study, we were also able to go to lunch, shopping, and simply spend time chatting together. It was fun being able to hear her unique stories and experience her personality in a normal friendship setting. As I grow older, the importance of possessing relationships of quality rather than quantity continues to become ever more clear.

I learned that I can influence lives. Most young teenagers are still in the stage where they think it's cool to think things aren't cool, so upon beginning this study with my cousin I was a little bit worried, I wasn't sure she would engage in it fully or even pay attention enough to get anything out of it. I am very happy to say that my fears were wildly off base. Last week we finished the study and a few questions from the text asked about who had influenced her faith up to this point and what methods those people had used that stuck with her. She replied, "Well, my parents and teachers have told me all of what's in this book, but it wasn't until you went through it with me that it all started making sense. I don't care what my sisters say or if they oppose, I'm going to go through this with them too." I was extremely taken aback (and super excited!) upon hearing that, surprised an activity that didn't seem like a huge deal to me could impact someone else in a huge way.

As summer is ending, the time has now come for both my cousin and me to head back to school, her to her freshman year of high school and me to my freshman year of college. I'm beyond proud of her for how much she's grown and the incredible young woman she is becoming. For the opportunity to be present in this part of her life I am forever grateful.

But she deserves much of the credit too, had she not chosen me as her sponsor I never would have learned all that I have this summer. What I am taking away most from this experience is how important it is to invest in time spent with others, especially those younger than yourself, and especially in activities that build good character and provide positive influence. Being older and more mature, there is a world of information and knowledge you can project onto younger generations, and who knows, YOU might even learn a few things along the way too.