I grew up in a Christian home, was homeschooled from a Christian worldview, and went to church every Sunday with my family. Nevertheless, I struggled greatly with the existence of God until I was about 12 years old, at which point I ceded my life to Christ after much internal turmoil and reflection. Bible study and learning about my faith became personally important thereafter. I began to enthusiastically dig into what my faith said about the character of my God and the impact that knowledge should have on my life.

After my family moved to Greenville, SC, the Epic Retreat was one of my first introductions to Fellowship Greenville. Growing up, Christian camps were one of the many ways I experienced God working in my life, so I had high expectations for what I might experience on this retreat. Midway through the weekend, I found myself openly frustrated that I wasn’t finding the fellowship I thought I was seeking, annoyed that I couldn’t fit in with the people around me, and disheartened by what I thought was lost time. In hindsight, I can look back and see God molding a proud heart into a humbler and more loving servant. I struggled with legalism and not extending grace where I should have, and needed to practice forgiveness. Despite my attitude, God worked through the people and teaching at Epic to grow me in ways I didn’t realize I needed to.

I looked forward to Epic 2023 and wasn’t let down. I experienced an incredibly welcoming community and wonderful biblical teaching. I was able to connect with the people around me and experienced a genuine renewal in my relationship with God. I left feeling encouraged by the many students who committed their lives to Christ and furthered my own relationship with God. In both of my experiences on the Epic retreat, God used the people and teaching to personally grow me into someone more like Himself.