A Young Adult Leader Whose Impact Brings Deeper Meaning To Others

        There is a man that I met this Summer at Greater Grace World Outreach. He has French heritage, is older, has a beard, nice smile and dresses professionally. I usually meet with him and his wife in the library of Maryland Bible College and Institute. He leads the young adults ministry there. 

      He moved here from France many years ago, so he speaks French and English. I always find his accent interesting and appreciate learning more about French culture from him. One because I went to Paris, France and Leon, France back in 2019 for a mission trip. Two because he speaks French and I would like to learn more about French beyond “Ca va” and “oui”.

       He has some leadership qualities that I have benefited greatly from when there are opportunities for this. He likes to invest in the lives of young adults by serving them food, hosting people over at his house, facilitating discussions with us about the Bible, sharing knowledge and wisdom, and making us feel welcomed. Finally, this helps me think of what leadership qualities could be good to implement when I invest into the lives of young people in the Baltimore community.

        I am finding while living in Baltimore, MD, that connecting with someone is great but we need to see the value in staying connected on a deeper and more meaningful level. When there are opportunities for this, it’s possible that one may be going through a desperate experience to keep revisiting a person who has wisdom. For example, when my sister died back in October, it was necessary for me to meet with him and his wife. I think what made her loss challenging is one because I never loss a sibling who I spent many years of my life with and two because she left behind 3 teenagers that I helped her care for at different times in my life. With that being said, I needed guidance on how to invest in young people and I knew he had years of experience of building up a young persons faith in Jesus Christ. As I opened up to him about what happened, I knew He was already a confident communicator about sharing knowledge of God’s word, but this time I saw him quiet, caring and more in tuned about what I had to say. Due to how he responded with his level of knowledge and wisdom about life after death, he helped me heal. I found that he could bring meaning to my family trial that was hard to handle alone. Afterwards, I realized that to be an understanding person, it isn’t a question of age, it’s a question of applying wisdom in very specific matters. Without wisdom, and applying appropriate knowledge necessary for the situation, one wouldn’t be understanding. Without being welcoming, one wouldn’t encourage the broken hearted to be comforted. This was his gift and connecting with people as they use their gifts can bring a deeper meaning that also results in valuing ongoing future meetings.

      After meeting with him, I was reminded that it’s important to prefer to meet with someone during a time of family crisis who is mature enough to handle dealing with a subject that was sensitive to me. I in turn was encouraged to think of new ways that could be helpful for people who were losing loved ones to COVID 19 to give them hope. It’s all too common that we need people who have gone before us and are wise at heart to be discerning of what’s going on looking from the outside into another person’s life or their impact can render a different response during specific matters when they are needed the most. With that, seeing his heart as a good counselor was helpful. He even remembered to follow up with me many months after the loss of my sister. This reinforced how much he cared. 

      To give you a better understanding of the knowledge and wisdom he has, he taught as a professor at Maryland Bible College and seminary. Students come to listen to his eloquent communication style and heart to build on their faith in God by adding to their faith knowledge. I find that it’s helpful to listen intently and ask the proper questions to better understand what he is speaking considering that he has a French accent. I find that because he also connects well with people by showing compassion, this helps students feel comfortable with coming back around to ask questions as needed.

       Spending time with him helps me understand the quality standards in a good young adult leader to young adult relationship. I find it fun to watch. A young adult has to desire knowledge which may happen in the beginning of his or her quest to make tough choices as they get older. A young adult leader has to be mindful of the young adult's need for knowledge. The young adult has to be motivated to learn, listen, be respectful and follow directions. The young adult leader has to know how to be welcoming, compassionate, respectful, be sober about judgement towards others, listen, discern, be great at interpreting knowledge and engaging the young adults. One thing I appreciate is that, even those he deals with who are young and wise, he isn’t intimidated by them. I’m still discovering this, but I think he likes to take the approach of quietly listening, agreeing and affirming them instead of talking over them or expressing jealousy. 

       We share the same faith in God, and appreciate our differences. He is older, I am younger. He grew up in France, I grew up in America. He has French heritage, while my heritage is African American with French as part of my heritage. He is married, I am single. He is male, I am female. He speaks two languages, but I only speak one. With that, we respect each other and have an understanding of the need for different traits. 

      In conclusion, I appreciate the value we bring to each other’s lives. I enjoy making him and his wife feel welcomed since they are settled here in America. It helps them connect well with other young adults I introduce them to, experience a confidence to stay and live well here. I get to see how his gifts are impacting the lives of young adults in my generation and their faith in God. These are some memories I find that bring deeper meanings that are necessary for valuing future meetings with him.