Joy Wieters’ Story
Joy Wieters grew up as the oldest of seven. At sixteen she felt like she had the perfect life and the perfect family. Her parents homeschooled her, she had friends, and she was involved in church.
Five years ago she was invited by her youth pastor to attend Leadership Quest. She had never been camping and knew that part of the experience would be way out of her comfort zone. What she didn’t realize were the other life-changing ways she would be stretched during her time at Leadership Quest.
During free time on the second full day of LQ, Joy found a quiet place in the woods to be alone. She wanted to reflect on the week and what God was doing in her. As an introvert, she felt like LQ thrust her into an intense time with people. Being homeschooled, Joy was used to working and being alone, but at the same time, she did not feel like a sheltered homeschooler. Her mom always made sure she had many social opportunities.
So, even though Joy had a solid social life, she was not used to being around people so much, and she certainly was not used to feeling relationally safe enough to fully be herself. While she had developed some good friends back home and even had some friends who were with her at LQ, Joy realized that she didn’t truly feel safe in her friendships—that is, safe enough to be open, vulnerable and fully transparent. She was amazed at how included and accepted she felt by a group of mostly strangers when she simply was herself.
When describing her time at LQ, Joy said, “LQ helps you realize if you are really willing to be honest with someone.” Joy’s favorite verse from the week was Colossians 3:3: “For you have died and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.” When she thought about this verse from Colossians, she felt hidden away and protected even when she felt vulnerable.
LQ was the first time Joy had ever thought about her talents and character traits. In one exercise, LQ students complete a list of 25 assets (qualities, gifts, talents, etc.) In reflecting on those Joy said, “That helped me to see that I can be positive to myself, encourage myself in the strengths I have. This is not prideful. This is my strength; I am going to live more into it. This is my weakness; I’m going to let it go. Being honest with myself was the first step in being honest with others.” She discovered that seeing herself honestly was very valuable and helps her to be honest with other people.