My name is Ramzi but my name has been changed for security reasons. I grew up with my father, mother and nine siblings in a very poor neighborhood in a large city in North Africa. During my childhood, my mother tragically died, leaving me, my siblings and my father behind. This was devastating to me. My father remarried shortly after; this fractured our family dynamics. He had children with his new wife and pushed me and my siblings out of the house. I then jumped around, living in many different places with family and friends. For the last year, I have lived with Young Life leaders.
I came to know the Lord through these Young Life leaders. I saw them leading club in the streets and began to ask questions that eventually pointed me to Jesus. In Islam, we have to do things for our salvation and be good enough to enter paradise. Through these leaders, I learned what it means to follow Christ and that Jesus can be in us without anything we earn or do. I then prayed and gave my life to Christ. I help run Young Life clubs around the city and help other leaders plan clubs and camps in order to try to reach every kid in our community.
As a recipient of the Developing Global Leaders scholarship, I am studying media and communications at a local university. I hope to fulfill my life-long dream of getting a degree in journalism. I will be the first person in my family to graduate from university. I want to find a job to change the cycle of poverty in my family. Young Life and Jesus have changed my life, so I also hope to go into ministry after graduation and offer hope to my country.
