Ministering Makes a Difference
Amelia wasn’t sure if she would feel like she belonged at church. She’s so glad people reached out.
Photographs by Daniel Scott
Amelia, a young woman in New Zealand, hadn’t been to church in seven years.
During her parents’ divorce, Amelia’s family was put in a difficult situation, and they decided to stop attending church. “We weren’t getting support from anybody,” Amelia remembers.
But one Sunday, seven years later, Amelia’s mom decided to give church attendance another try. She had a good experience and invited her daughters to come back to church with her. Amelia thought, “What do I have to lose?”
“I’m So Glad You’re Here”
“I was a little on edge at first,” Amelia says. “I didn’t have the most positive association with the Church.”
But she decided to accept her mother’s invitation, and she doesn’t regret it. “As soon as I walked into church, people said to me, ‘I haven’t seen you here before’ and ‘Welcome to our church’ and ‘I’m so glad you’re here!’” Amelia remembers.
“Nobody alienated me. Everyone was really welcoming and kind.”
But as Amelia looked around during church, she started to think she might not belong after all. “I couldn’t help but separate myself from people because I started comparing myself to what other kids knew and who they knew,” Amelia says. “Many kids in my ward are family or have been close friends since they were young, so they seemed to know each other well,” she says.
After sacrament meeting the bishop came up to Amelia and said, “Hi, I’m Bishop Watts. I would love for you to say hi to everybody.” He took her to the Young Women classroom and introduced her to the other girls. “That was such an important interaction because it gave me this spark of hope that I could make a community where I was,” Amelia explains.
And that encouraged her to go back to church the next Sunday.
A Lesson in Kindness
The next week, Amelia met India, the bishop’s daughter. She said, “Hi, I saw you the other day. My name is India. It’d be really nice to get to know you.”
That day, the class was talking about something Amelia hadn’t learned yet. India leaned over and asked, “Do you understand this?” Amelia said, “No.” So India helped her understand the lesson.
“I can’t remember the lesson now, but I do remember how she noticed that I needed help,” Amelia says. “Her kindness toward me was the most important lesson I learned that day.”
India taught Amelia everything she could about church, and she helped Amelia find answers to her questions. During those early weeks and months she became like a guide to Amelia. “She always knew exactly what to say,” Amelia remembers. “It was the most spiritual thing I had experienced in years.”
As Amelia tried to fit in with new people, India reassured her that nobody would judge her for being new at church. “She made me feel comfortable with being new,” Amelia says.
Amelia let India know a little bit about her struggles in her family situation, including having lived with an abusive father before her parents’ divorce. “India was the first person I trusted in that environment,” Amelia says. “I know that Heavenly Father works miracles, because whenever I talked to India, she always said something that helped. She made sure I never felt alone.”
Amelia says that India gave her reassurance that she could get back on track to what Heavenly Father wanted for her. “I don’t think I could have come back to church without India or Bishop Watts,” Amelia says.
India (left) helped Amelia feel welcome back at church.
It’s about Reaching Out
Amelia and India’s friendship helped Amelia come closer to the Savior. “When I came back to church, I wasn’t sure how to have a relationship with Jesus Christ. India helped me understand that even though I couldn’t see the Savior, I could still feel His love, influence, and miracles in my life,” Amelia explains. “She showed me Christlike love. Now, I want to be somebody’s India. I want to be there for somebody when they need me.”
Amelia believes that ministering means more than taking an assignment—it’s about reaching out to people. “It’s seeing someone in a difficult situation and, instead of waiting for them to ask for help, being there when somebody else can benefit from it,” Amelia says. “India and Bishop Watts ministered to me when I was worried about not having a community. Now that I do, I’m so glad that somebody reached out.”
Amelia wants other youth to know that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ love them, even when they feel like they don’t belong. “If you feel like you’re not good enough, or that you don’t belong here in this Church, remember that this is your place too,” she says.
“And you can always come back.”