‘My Sphere of Influence Was Bigger Than Just My Youth Group’ – Freya’s Onelife Conference Story
Aged 15, I was super shy, and super unhappy at school. I was really lacking in confidence and found myself on the fringes of friendship groups.
Practically that looked like not knowing where to go at lunchtime: sometimes I might go to the library and get work done, but sometimes I’d spend the break just sitting in a toilet cubicle and hoping no-one would ask me afterwards where I'd been. I felt full of shame and thought I had nothing to offer.
But then I got involved with Onelife, and came to a national conference.
I remember the first session I heard was about vulnerability and leadership. I’d never heard those two things linked before. I went into the conference thinking they were in opposition to one another. The thing I took away most from the Onelife conferences growing up was that feeling weak doesn't disqualify you as a leader. In fact, owning that weakness as part of your story makes you a better leader.
I left the Onelife conference realising my sphere of influence was much bigger than just my church youth group. It included my school where I didn’t think I could have an impact. I felt like I was living somewhat of a double life: at church I was a leader, while at school, I was shy, I hid myself, I didn’t think I really had anything to offer. The conference taught me that I didn't have to sit passively in the culture that was already there. I could introduce little things that could change the culture at school a little bit, such as consciously thinking about how I could be a really good friend to the people around me.
“The conference showed me that you don’t have to be leading in church in order to be a Christian leader’
I knew that there'd been a positive transformation within myself, because a year later I applied to be school captain – and got it. I remember thinking how a year before, I was the girl who sat in the toilets and didn't want anyone to see her! That girl would never have even applied, let alone get the position! So, I knew there'd been a transformation in the way I viewed myself and the way others viewed me.
The Onelife conference showed me that you don’t have to be leading in church in order to be a Christian leader. I loved seeing people at the conference share their stories, the ways in which they were leading and seeing God’s kingdom come in all different spheres of society. These were people doing big, really cool things – and I came away encouraged to dream a little bigger. I realised that, if God puts a big dream in your heart, you don’t have to be scared by it! Being ambitious and having big dreams isn’t necessarily a negative – it can be from God.
I don’t yet know what my ‘big dream’ is going to be, or what I’m going to do after I leave university. I know often when people think about their future after university, they’re filled with dread and fear – but remembering all those stories of people leading in their sphere of society, and how God was doing amazing things through them, makes me really excited for the future!
Join us for our 2022 Onelife Conference
Saturday 19 February · 8.30am – 9.00pm · St Andrew’s Chorleywood