A Letter to the Soul Family

Dear Soul Sanctuary,

My name is Levi and up until very recently I have been a part of the Soul family. I want to take this opportunity to say thank you. Thank you for welcoming me, for inviting me, and for your kindness and love. Even though our time together was short, Soul Sanctuary quickly became my home and you quickly became my family. It would have been easy for me to stay and enjoy living and serving with you for years, but as I did my best each day to respond to Jesus’ invitation to “follow me,” I began to sense that there was an invitation for me to explore the possibility of serving vocationally in church ministry. This is a thought that I have had for most of my life, so as I processed this decision with Jesus, close friends, and mentors, it became clear to me that there was an invitation and opportunity to pursue that calling. It didn’t take too long for an opportunity to present itself and I have decided to say yes to it. I will now be serving as a Young Adults Pastor at another church in Winnipeg and I am excited to follow Christ’s lead in this new endeavour. Personally, it feels like a good moment to take a step in faith, to try something that scares me, and to share the love that I have received with others. As I transition to this new role in Christian ministry, it’s important for me to let you know that I wouldn’t be in this place without the community and presence of Soul Sanctuary.

For most of my life I have been involved in Christian ministry. Whether that has been as a youth leader, a camp leader, on missions trips, or “just” being part of a church, I have always loved being involved in teams that are reaching out and inviting others to follow and experience Jesus. All my life I was drawn to these opportunities and I consistently felt that I came alive as I explored sharing the gifts that God has given me. However, in the last couple years a lot of my dreams and passions for ministry had died.

Like so many others, 2020 and the pandemic was a dark time for me. On top of the isolation and anxiety as our world was turned upside down, I had a number of painful experiences in my personal life and I was left feeling trapped in darkness and depression. Many aspects of my community had changed and at times during the last few years I felt alone, isolated, and without a way out of the pain. I felt broken and I felt hopeless.

This is the state I was in as I entered Soul Sanctuary. Looking for belonging and looking for healing I limped in, often feeling scared and insecure. But slowly, step by step I experienced the healing love of Jesus’ church. It started with a few small conversations on Sundays during the 2021 parking lot services and it eventually led to me volunteering in worship and WILDLIFE. Slowly but surely I began to see that I was taking steps which led towards freedom. As I began to meet so many beautiful people and share who I truly was with them, I began to see once again that I had something of value to bring to the Church. New sparks of hope and faith began to come alive in me as I experienced the presence of Jesus though his people. Often this came through chatting with fellow youth leaders, and many, many times it came through hanging out with an incredible group of Grade 10 students at WILDLIFE Youth. As I shared my heart with others I experienced acceptance, love and healing. I was soon able to share the good gifts that I had received with others.

So, thank you. Thank you for being open to being used by the Spirit of God. Thank you for demonstrating the life and reality of Jesus and his kingdom through both large and small acts of obedience. You have made a difference, you have helped me discover freedom with Jesus, and you have inspired me to make a difference. As I transition into a new church community I pray that I will be able to help foster a community that can offer these same things to the next person who, like me, limps into a church looking for healing, community, and freedom in Jesus. I pray that Jesus will continue to write many more stories like mine through Soul Sanctuary for years to come.

With love, Levi