"For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them." Matthew 18:20
In my senior year of high school, I was asked to make a Creedal Statement, a snapshot of my faith at 17 years old. It was a pass fail assignment required of every graduate. My central assertion was that my God was responsible for the broad strokes of my life, and that I was responsible for the details. God had given me the overarching themes of my life, and it was up to me to make something of it. Reading over it now, I appreciate that language. I am still uncomfortable in Christian spaces where members seem to brush off any personal responsibility of their life, their choices, their path, and say "it's all up to God to show me."
I still feel this way now. I carry my faith with me, but I know that I must put in the work my own self. I've always felt that people should know who I am and what I believe by the way I act and the way I interact with others. I want to be someone who lives out my faith.
My work with Guatemala Youth Initiative is something that not many people would associate with the church: sexual education. That being said, what sexual education means is empowerment, love, respect and communication, all of which are themes throughout the Bible. I know in my heart that God is with me when I work with youth, especially around these subjects. The God that I know does not want anyone to fall victim to manipulation or to become a parent before they are ready to be. The God I know wants each of us to know love.
That's why the above bible verse speaks to me.I believe that so much of the work we do as believers must be done outside of the walls of the church. I know that whenever, wherever I am, God is with me and works through me.
That's what I try to explain to people when they ask me about my YASC experience. It's not a cookie cutter experience, which is what drew me to ti in the first place. YASC let me follow my own heart and my own calling and put my talents to use. Bishop Romero here in Guatemala has been nothing but supportive and my placement with GYI lets me grow towards the person I want to be.