My sophomore year... At this point in my life, I was selfishly thinking that I was everyones second choice. The close friends that I had didn't seem to be there for me anymore, and I liked a guy that would never even imagine liking me. There were absent figures in my life that I, as a teenager, was not able to "live without." To me I was constantly comparing myself to many of the other girls and honestly, I just didn't like who I was. I didn't like how I wasn't accepting of myself inside and out. I felt empty.
About a year ago today, I was asked to go to this Christian based club called Younglife by a fellow cheerleader. There was no way for her personally to describe what it was or how it makes kids feel but she just told me, "Go you want regret it." I couldn't drive so, poor thing, she had to pick me up from my house and take me home every single time I went, but her dedication was unforgettable. The very first Younglife "Club" I went to I remember hearing the song set a fire, and although it was a simple song, words are powerful. If you've never heard the lyrics they are, "Set a Fire down in my soul, that I can't contain and I can't control, I want more of you God." Growing up in the Catholic church I never really got to hear worship songs that were more my speed or my generation. Then this guy named Kody (a Younglife leader) talked about Jesus, and as bad as this may sound I don't even remember exactly what he said, but I remember the way it made me feel. The feeling of security and warmth, being inspired, and just the feeling of being worth something to someone. I realized at that Younglife club I was not the "second choice" to God.
So I kept going back, week after week, monday after monday. I got to learn about Jesus in a way I never knew before. Things he had done for us to live the life that we do. And then one Monday in the announcements there was camp sign-ups. An opportunity to go to one of the prettiest places in the world to experience the best week of your life. So of course I had to go. For me I got to bond with amazing people that were really in the same position I was. Growing up I always knew there was a God, but I didn't have a personal relationship with God. At Younglife camp I got to experience God's love up in the mountains, and believe me it was by far the best/most eye-opening week of my life. The camp itself was life changing.
When I came home I was on something called a "Camp High" and about every camp out there gives you that. After coming home you tell your parents everything, about the food, what the cabins looked like, what you did... But I couldn't help but share to people how I felt. Being at that Younglife camp gave me that same feeling of the first time I ever went to a Younglife club. I felt secure, warm, accepted and overall just loved for who I am.
You see Im not sharing this with everyone on the world wide web to lecture y'all or to tell you to go to Younglife. Im just letting y'all in on my testomony, it's hard for me to believe that a year ago I didn't have a relationship with God. Younglife didn't only bring me to God, it brought me to the right friends. The ones that care and guide me onto the right road. But for now and forever I will know God that loves me for who I am, and a year ago I would never be able to admit that. Now my Junior year I am a "Junior leader" at my Younglife club, and I am on the worship team where I get to sing songs like set a fire to kids that were in my same shoes. This opportunity has been one of the best things I think I could've ever done and I'd like to give a big thank you to the Younglife Staff in my hometown and up at Crooked Creek Ranch that helped me build my relationship with God, and for that I will be eternally grateful.
About a year ago today, I was asked to go to this Christian based club called Younglife by a fellow cheerleader. There was no way for her personally to describe what it was or how it makes kids feel but she just told me, "Go you want regret it." I couldn't drive so, poor thing, she had to pick me up from my house and take me home every single time I went, but her dedication was unforgettable. The very first Younglife "Club" I went to I remember hearing the song set a fire, and although it was a simple song, words are powerful. If you've never heard the lyrics they are, "Set a Fire down in my soul, that I can't contain and I can't control, I want more of you God." Growing up in the Catholic church I never really got to hear worship songs that were more my speed or my generation. Then this guy named Kody (a Younglife leader) talked about Jesus, and as bad as this may sound I don't even remember exactly what he said, but I remember the way it made me feel. The feeling of security and warmth, being inspired, and just the feeling of being worth something to someone. I realized at that Younglife club I was not the "second choice" to God.
So I kept going back, week after week, monday after monday. I got to learn about Jesus in a way I never knew before. Things he had done for us to live the life that we do. And then one Monday in the announcements there was camp sign-ups. An opportunity to go to one of the prettiest places in the world to experience the best week of your life. So of course I had to go. For me I got to bond with amazing people that were really in the same position I was. Growing up I always knew there was a God, but I didn't have a personal relationship with God. At Younglife camp I got to experience God's love up in the mountains, and believe me it was by far the best/most eye-opening week of my life. The camp itself was life changing.
When I came home I was on something called a "Camp High" and about every camp out there gives you that. After coming home you tell your parents everything, about the food, what the cabins looked like, what you did... But I couldn't help but share to people how I felt. Being at that Younglife camp gave me that same feeling of the first time I ever went to a Younglife club. I felt secure, warm, accepted and overall just loved for who I am.
You see Im not sharing this with everyone on the world wide web to lecture y'all or to tell you to go to Younglife. Im just letting y'all in on my testomony, it's hard for me to believe that a year ago I didn't have a relationship with God. Younglife didn't only bring me to God, it brought me to the right friends. The ones that care and guide me onto the right road. But for now and forever I will know God that loves me for who I am, and a year ago I would never be able to admit that. Now my Junior year I am a "Junior leader" at my Younglife club, and I am on the worship team where I get to sing songs like set a fire to kids that were in my same shoes. This opportunity has been one of the best things I think I could've ever done and I'd like to give a big thank you to the Younglife Staff in my hometown and up at Crooked Creek Ranch that helped me build my relationship with God, and for that I will be eternally grateful.