I was feeling isolated and looking for something more. I had been around church most of my life, but I wasn’t very involved and I definitely didn’t think I’d ever work at a church. I decided to give getting more involved a try because I was lost about what to do with my life.
When I first started coming to Crossroads, I felt intimidated by how massive the church was but I was also amazed at the amount of people who were welcoming and wanted me to be a part of their community. Eventually, I started volunteering with middle school students. I immediately felt like I was having an impact on their lives, and I was blown away by their willingness to come up to me and talk about what they were going through. Building those connections that I know will last a lifetime is huge. Being able to impact the younger generation and helping lead them to be more like Christ has been so fulfilling.
I was so proud when they stepped up and decided to go to Camp, and that’s where I decided to take the next step in my own faith and get baptized.
After that, I was nominated to become a Scholars intern at Crossroads. I wasn’t sure about working at a church, but I decided to give it a try. I got to work with the Content team, and the work I did alongside my own mentors helped me learn more about myself and how to serve others well. I grew in my confidence and the way I care for people around me. As my time in Scholars came to a close, I realized that I do enjoy being in ministry and wanted to explore more. Now, I’m a fellow in Crossroads 1824, where I get to build into the next generation of leaders and hand off the baton in a new way.
God is using me in fresh ways, and I’m excited to see what he has planned next. I think my 10x impact could look like me being able to spread the word to others even outside of my community whether that’s in different cities or even different states. I want to start from Cincinnati and build my way through impacting and building into the next generation and expanding beyond.-Raimone B.