Amelia, right, with Otago student Sheryl Raju at Summit.
Dave Hodgkinson received this message from Tauranga student Amelia Tagica after Summit 2018. Amelia was a Creative Arts and Design student at Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology.
Bula and kia ora,
This week of fellowship has been incredible! Thank you for all that you have serviced us with. It was a wonderful time coming together with tertiary students from all walks of life and different ethnic backgrounds to fellowship together before God.
Summit has really encouraged me to step up in faith, looking deeper into God’s Word and committing myself to a life of prayer as I leave uni and prepare myself for my career and life in general.
This has also challenged me to step up in faith as a young Pacific Islander who had been feeling lost for quite a while. I felt isolated within the cultures of New Zealand as I recently moved here seeking a fresh start. Coming from Fiji and a shy, keep-to-your-comfort-zone mentality, I had to learn new ways. It was very different living on new soil, let alone as a young Christian surrounded by interesting modern culture.
During these five days of fellowship, I observed how my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ praised and worshipped God with a fearless, yet God-fearing heart. It amazed me more that these students were young but still passionate about God, passionate about learning His Word, passionate about prayer. They were spiritually rooted in Christ, open, happy and free. And that was something I had wanted to feel for a very long time—a real taste of what it is like to follow God, at a young age, with confidence as an (introverted) Islander living out of my comfort zone.
Thank you for reaching out to the youth and moulding them to be God-fearing Christians, and thank you for showing me how to stand firm and be bold and courageous before God. God is good! I pray that God will continue to mould me and help strengthen my faith in him, and continue to speak to me through his Word as I continue living life fresh and renewed.
May God continue to bless the team, may God continue to bless the work you do for the students, may God continue to guide you and work with you. I’m praying that through you, God will work amongst this young generation, touching hearts and changing lives, just as you have changed mine. I do not know where God plans to take me yet, but I’m excited. And I do pray I get to see you again.
Kalougata tiko nomuni qaravi tavi TSCF and vinaka vakalevu. God bless you and thank you.