Sienna finds hope and a future
When Sienna was in high school, she was battling with mental health and didn’t know what her future would hold. But behind the scenes, God had been at work paving the way for a beautiful future.
“In Year 11 I had some pretty bad anxiety and depression that came out of left-field. It stopped me going to school, and I’d stay in my room in my bed all day,” says Sienna.
“I ended up dropping out of school completely.”
That’s when she started attending a local youth group, and things began to turn a corner.
“I met a bunch of leaders who were really cool. I was so motivated to be like them; they just had something different. I started going to Sunday services, ‘met God’ and got baptised.”
Soon after, Sienna was invited to lead on SU Australia’s Glen Echo camp in Albany through connections from her church community. Only 17 at the time, Sienna was still a junior leader, but she quickly realised that youth ministry was something she wanted to invest in.
“I love camps – they’re definitely my passion. After that first one, I signed up to every single camp I could find – didn’t matter what it was, I was going,” says Sienna.
“I think it was watching the way my [youth group] leaders did life that was so transformational for me. As a camp leader, my priority is to make the campers feel loved and make memories, and hopefully plant some seeds. ”
Through the connections she made through SU’s camping ministry, Sienna then signed on to join SU Australia’s internship program in Western Australia.
“The internship is incredible. It’s a group of people who love Jesus and want to learn and grow, and are so passionate about young people,” says Sienna.
Sienna is at her happiest when she’s working with kids through SU’s camping ministry and in-school mentoring programs, and SU’s internship provides opportunities for her to do this.
“I think God made us to do life with him, and also with people. It’s ideal to be surrounded by young people in the same faith stage as you and who share your passions.”
Since the internship team spends a lot of time together, they have healthy conversations around conflict resolution and what it means to disciple and walk alongside children and young people.
“Every morning we have a staff devotion, which often ends in discussions and conversations and theological chats. We’re also going through Peter Scazzero’s Emotionally Healthy Spirituality course, and that’s been great,” says Sienna.
From not knowing what was in store for her future, to now living out her God-given calling, your support is providing opportunities for young people like Sienna to discover life and find their place in God’s big story.
If you’d like to find out more about SU Australia internship opportunities and how they can be life-transformational, head to su.org.au/internship.