Anna

My name is Anna, and I live in Belfast, Northern Ireland, with my mom, dad and brother. Growing up, I was always into sports and took it very seriously. I played soccer for multiple hours a week and played for my country at 16 years old. Soccer took over my life, and I was not able to attend church and quickly fell away from religion. When I was in high school, I started to struggle with my body image and feeling lonely. I struggled making friends and accepting that there could be a God who loved me.

When I was 14 years old, I attended Young Life for the first time after being invited by my new youth leader. I slowly started to get back into my relationship with God, but still felt like I was faking it. However, a few years later, I attended a discipleship weekend where I was surrounded by worship, love and prayer. I truly felt God’s presence in the room and also within me. From that moment, I was no longer worried about how I looked or feeling lonely, but felt a huge relief. I decided that I actually wanted to follow Jesus, put Him first and give my life to Him. I am now a volunteer Young Life leader. I also serve at my church. 

As a recipient of the Developing Global Leaders scholarship, I am studying science and medicine at Queens University in Belfast. With my degree, I hope to become a high school biology teacher. I want to inspire and encourage young people. I also want to continue leading in Young Life.