UD Turns Three
Not everyone is aware, but Urban Disciple has been up and running for three years now. On January 27th, 2013, I created this blog. I was not sure what it would be used for, but God knew. I ran the blog singlehandedly for two years, but last year I ran the blog with a full blown team. In 2014, through small talk here and there, a team was being formed for Urban Disciple. I shared the vision with some people, and soon they, too, wanted to be apart of what God was doing.
I learned a lot last year, more than I experienced in the first two years of the blog. The same can be said for the rest of the team. As #UDTurns3, we wanted to reflect on the highs and lows of 2015, and glorify the Father in His faithfulness to this blog. Prepare your hearts, it’s about to get real.
Olamide
The last year taught me many things about myself, I can legit write a blog post on it, but some things should remain unknown. You know, I need material for my autobiography *winks*.
My High: The Trials and Tribulations That Came With Working With A Team
“If You Want To Go Fast, Go Alone. If You Want To Go Far, Go Together”
-Your African Uncle Visiting You in America
I love my team. With no benefit of a doubt, I am grateful to serve with them. But it took some time for me to say this statement. Most of us just knew each other by name, but weren’t close friends. We were five individuals, who came together because we each saw the vision with a unique way we could contribute to it. Although, we all weren’t closest of friends, we were definitely a strong team. Through them, I learned how to work with others, as well as to trust them with the blog. At the end of the day, this wasn't my blog anymore, but ours. With our different personalities, I learned the culture of honor had to be established amongst us in order for everyone to feel apart of the team and vision. Even to this day, I am still learning ways to communicate to them and ways to honor their ideas and suggestions.
Low: The Lack of Support.
God is faithful to His word and His promises. His words don't return back to Him void, but fulfilled. This blog was fully funded on my 24th birthday by my awesome friends, who believed in the blog and I. I honestly can’t thank them enough. But regardless of that, I learned that ‘friends’ is not synonymous for ‘supporters’. I was so accustomed to people supporting UD back when it was ran by me, I assumed it would continue with the new blog. However, that wasn't the case. I reflected back on the night where I had one guest visit the former blog. Someone from Saudi Arabia, a predominantly Islamic country, who probably didn't know Jesus or had ever been to a church, read MY blog. That fueled me. That’s who I write for and desire “support” from - people who don’t know Jesus. God helped me realize that this blog wasn't for my friends, but the individuals who I will probably never meet, yet I could impact their relationship with Jesus.
Low: The “Illusion of Competition”
*insert cliche quote about a flower blooming and not competing* Blazay blazay blah. I don’t like competition, even though I tend to be an overachiever at times. I don’t think I will go into details with this “low.” But I believed when I came out with the relaunching of the blog, there were other Christians bloggers on the scene as well. Instead of it being mutual support for all parties, it was more so of an environment of competition. It made it hard to run a blog in freedom because every move was cloudy by the thought of imitating the style and ways of another blog. We have one common goal - to proclaim the Kingdom until the glorious return of Jesus Christ. We are on the same team. Can a house divided stand?
Toyin
Working with Olamide and the whole UD team has been a very fun and challenging experience since the very beginning. When I was initially asked to join, I was so nervous and felt inadequate to take on a role of writing on Christian topics in areas I was struggling with myself, never mind being Editor-in-Chief! But still I said yes, and I haven’t looked back since.
High: Working with a Team
Working with a team has helped me find the confidence I needed to put my skills to use and learn more skills that I would not have been able to learn on my own. They are very supportive and encouraging, and if the content of our work does not make sense we will not only let each other know, but we will work collectively to make each article that gets published is clear, concise, and accurate. They continue to inspire and help me grow in my walk with God because I see Him working through them. I am always amazed by the stuff we are learning individually just from reading the articles. We are a family, and I enjoy doing life virtually with them :)
Low: Finding my Niche
When I first started out at UD, I had a hard time understanding my role in the team. I was not sure what an ‘Editor-in-Chief’ was supposed to do or how to act, so I can admit that I was a bit aggressive. Aside from that, I felt like I was not being heard or taken seriously, but most of it was all in my head. All I needed to do was speak up! I would ask the group so often if I should just change the title of my role, but they of course encouraged me to keep it. As time went on we all became comfortable with each other and sharing our ideas, and we fell into our roles soon enough.
Deborah
I love my team. Jume Bug is my favorite. Toy Toy is always random, but hilarious and stern. Gabe is bae of life. Lamz is actually annoying great. I don’t know how God made her, but He’s lit for doing so. I always wanted to have a blog and share my life foreal, because we all have powerful testimonies and I knew that if nothing else, God would receive the glory for all that He’s done in my life. So to be apart of a very lit lit litttttt group of people who desire the same thing? I couldn’t ask for any better.
High: Sharing stories
I think my biggest triumph was being able to share stories about struggles and really offer advice. Hebrews 10 talks about never failing to meet up and fellowship with one another, and I felt like Urban Disciple kind of acted as that. It can be very easy to feel isolated from the Christian community as if we aren’t all thinking, living, or experiencing the same thing. So I think just having a place where we can talk about the awkwardness of being intentional, dealing with sexual sin, and struggling with our walks is what God calls us to. We need to know we are not alone, that there is hope, and that there is comfort in God through people. There is a power in our stories and I just want to share them with people so they know they are not alone.
Low: NOT Being Able to Share Stories..and Life Happening & Finding My Worth
So, my life just decided to change in 2015. I graduated, got a new job, and moved back home….things got real. Because things got real, I wasn’t able to write as much and share as much with people. Writing is my outlet, I have endless journals and I’m super pressed for the perfect ones to write my thoughts and prayers to God. It’s my love language so not being able to do it as much and sharing my thoughts and heart with people really sucks. So I don’t like real life….my team even clowned me for being on sabbatical longer than God was after Malachi (shoutout to Olamide)...but I wanna get back, and I hope to soon. I miss y’all.
My other low was feeling was the feeling of unworthiness and comparison. God has gifted all of us on the team with different skills to reach different people, but when you don’t receive feedback or comments on what a great blog you wrote and someone else does, it was like my articles weren’t as impacting. But that’s exactly how the devil works. He wants to discourage and divide the body of Christ, and as Olamide mentioned earlier, there is no competition in the Kingdom. Toyin could be an ear, Gabe a leg, Jummy a foot, Lamz, a hand, and I the eyes. We all serve different roles in the body and thus, we serve different roles on this team. We won’t look the same OR impact the same people. All I need to be concerned about is ensuring my heart is to glorify and honor God.
Jummy
These four right here need me (1 Corinthians 12:21). And I need them. It’s been an interesting year, nevertheless, with this Urban Disciple body. Since I internally determined to become a writer, I knew having a blog, whether a sports blog or a lifestyle blog, was something I had to incept in my everyday living. Just being able to share what God did for me, to me, and through me, while He inspired and wrote with me, became one of the greatest feelings I could ever have, and I knew I had to have, and do more. I knew this was to be a part of my life forever. Personally, this has been the hardest group I’ve had to work with because they never take my crap. It’s almost as if they beat me with rods to get what they wanted out of me. But it works….and I’m mad grateful for that.
High
We thank God, that through all that I’ve endured... I’m not dead. I kid, but I think the high for me, as cliche as it may be, is that we’ve been, and continue to be, bound together in love. I’ve come to learn that there are very few things more beautiful than unison, unity, and cohesiveness--oneness within the body--within one body. And I believe that’s where we’ve come to. Throughout everything: from the weeks were our producing was outstanding and we were dropping posts almost daily, to those dry, dry, dry times where nothing seemed to be produced---God still grew us as a family, and He’ll continue to grow us in Jesus name. Take note, this is one of those moments where I’m not being complicatedly deep...I think. :).
Low
“They keep bullying me...where’s my lawyer?” Jesus is my refuge, shield and buckler. I think the low for me last year, in more forms than one, was insecurity. I don’t know how it happened, I don’t know why it happened, but my heart became very tender and overly apt to absorbing pain. I foolishly took everything to heart. I was prideful, bitter, and indifferent at various moments in the year towards the UD team and myself. But I realized, thanks to Debbie being led by God, that I did a lot of self-condemning. I was very quick to scoff at myself for my shortcomings, not meeting a bar, or just not getting something done, that I wouldn’t tolerate advice, rebuke, and even encouragement from the team. I think this is where I say, ‘I’m my biggest critic.’ It’s true, I take everything I do personally and passionately. I think that understanding that aspect of myself and revealing it to the team, has helped us grow in understanding and patience. These guys have been ever so patient with me, and I love them for that. #UDtheBest #HashtagsArentMyThing #ImeanMyFirstBlogPostWasALongHashtag #WhyDidTheyLetMePostThatThingWithThatTitle
Gabriel
Oh man this team, there are so many things that I can say really. We are cohesive, but it’s a strange cohesive like double sided tape. Its annoying sometimes, but when you get to use it, it is clutch and can patch up many things. Everyone one on this team is valuable to me, including Jummy, whom I both love and don’t like. He can probably tell you why. He’s still great though. I know we have the potential for something big here.
Low: Having Heavy Hitters
Our team is full of people who do many things in life, so when it comes to doing things for Urban Disciple, we’re not able to bring our full energy to the table a lot of times. It just really stinks because we have great folks here, but we’re not as dedicated as we can be and it is because we are kind of spread thin. Not only do we do a lot, but we probably have 2 to 3 things to do for Urban Disciple. I pray that God adds more people to use so that our energies can be more direct and focused.
High: Diversely Like Minded
We all kind of think the same way, but we don’t. It is really cool actually like we have a variety of thoughts and ideas and they work because we are able to compliment each other well. It makes bringing ideas to the table much easier because you can trust that someone will assist and add to what you have to bring to the table.
Despite the highs and lows we all may have experienced collectively or individually, God is definitely doing something at UD. We can't wait to see what this year has in store for us. Stay tuned!
Class of 2015 Testimonies
College is more than an education. It's a place where you meet people from diverse backgrounds, with amazing stories. Over that last few years, we encountered some of these individuals, who just so happen to World Changers in the making. We want to honor them as well celebrate a milestone in their lives: Graduation.
Brittany LaBelle
Bachelors of Science in Psychology
Minor in Religious Studies
From University of Richmond
"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us".
Ephesians 3:20
During my college years, God blessed me in three incredible ways:
He Saved Me.
After wrestling with God and my flesh all throughout my first year of college, I finally submitted and gave my life to Christ. My life has never been the same.
He Healed Me.
I tore my ACL three times during my senior year of high school and I lost my scholarship to a Division 1 school. It manifested bitterness and anger in my heart towards everyone; I felt alone and worthless. Once I gave my life to Christ, He replaced the anger with His unconditional love for me and He has filled me in every way I could possibly desire.
He Supplied for Me.
Before entering college, my mom made a declaration that I would graduate college, with no debt, with no loans, owing nothing. At the time, I didn't think it was possible. However, I began to believe and hold Him to His Word that He will supply ALL my needs, and I'm proud and humbled to say He did. I graduated with NO LOANS, NO DEBT. All to the Glory of God, and let no other name be praised.
In addition to three miraculous blessings, I've
Pauline Russell
BACHELOR of Art in Criminology and Criminal Justice
Minor in Human Development
FROM UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND, COLLEGE PARK
“He withholds no good thing from those who walk uprightly…”
Psalms 84:11
The dreaded senior question: “So, what are you doing after graduation?” I've always been the girl who knows exactly what she wants. By age 19, I knew where I wanted to work, the car I was going to drive, and the bedtime I was going to have at 25 years old. I was a professional life planner and I was really, really good at it! But, I've learned that God and I both can’t be life planners.
At the start of my senior year, I began preparing for graduate school. I was journaling to God, while also writing what I believed He was responding to me. These written conversations came in handy when I received letters of rejection and acceptance. Things were not going as planned. I didn’t know what to say to God. I trusted Him, but I wasn’t sure what He was doing.
He reminded me of the promises He spoke to me months ago while journaling. The promise that all good things come from Him. The promise that He wouldn't withhold any good thing from me as I walk uprightly…. no admission, no scholarship, no job would He withhold from me as I follow Him.
Remembering who God is allowed me to rest in who I am and enjoy where He has placed me. Even if that means waiting to find out. Sure, I would love to know what I’m doing in advance, but where does that leave room for God to be the author of my life? He simply asks of me and the greatest response I can have is obedience.
I realize now, Jesus has done all the hard work while I have the privilege of following His lead. He loves to be good to me. It’s overwhelming to think this is only the beginning of His good, good plans.
Abeeb Ayodeji
BACHELORS in Kinesiology
FROM UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND, COLLEGE PARK
"Education is what remains after one has forgotten what one has learned in school."
- Albert Einstein
It's been said that transfers from Community College takes longer to graduate. Going into Prince George Community College as a freshman was humbling at first. I had to endure friends teasing me about going to the 13th grade, and critics telling me that I wasn't receiving a quality education. By God's grace, I was able to receive my associates degree in 2 years, with no hold backs. I transferred to the University of Maryland College Park 2 years ago and I'll be receiving my Bachelors in Kinesiology this Friday! Needless to say, God is faithfulllllllllll lol. Nothing that I have accomplished during my 4 years as an Undergraduate student would've been possible without the grace of Pops and the wonderful individuals that He surrounded me with. Thank you all, it’s been a pleasure. *bows*
Kimberly L. Godfrey
BACHELORS of Science in Accounting
BACHELORS OF SCIENCE IN Finance
FROM UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND, COLLEGE PARK
God has been so faithful these last four years to me. I have so many testimonies to share about these past four years that this could honestly be turned into a novel, but for the sake of the reader and my hands, I will make this short and sweet.
I was accepted into the University of Maryland, College Park, spring of 2011. I was extremely pumped! I had grown up basically on this campus because my parents use to work here and so I always knew in my heart from a young age that I would be walking these sidewalks one day to go to class. Once, I received my admittance letter, I read that I was not accepted into the Robert H. School of Business. At this sight, my heart sunk but I remember saying a prayer to God that day that I desired to be accepted into the business school and from that moment I would work extremely hard to see that dream come to fruition and I asked Him to open doors for me to walk freely through. I also had the desire in my heart to relieve my parents of any financial burden that I could so I remember praying to God that He would provide a way to make that happen, somehow someway.
He did just that and so much more!! Every year, from my freshman year to my senior year, I received countless scholarships and awards that increased in substantial value as my academic year progressed. God placed me in a group on campus called Markets and Society’s that was a select group geared towards helping those who desired to gain admittance in the business school and through this group, God was preparing me for later things that I would soon accomplish. He connected me with people within in the business school who vouched for me when I was applying to the business school. I continued to go to networking events and programs where I could connect with recruiters. After some networking events, I met my recruiter for Ernst and Young and after rounds of interviews, as a sophomore, I was offered an internship at one of the big four accounting firms. I still had not been admitted into the business school yet!
Even though I had not been admitted into the business school just yet, God gave me an idea my sophomore fall semester, to start an organization called the Leading Ladies Connecting and it was eventually launched my junior year. God did so many incredible things during the time that I was not in the business school. He grew my faith and grew me up. I learned to trust Him in every area of my life; my finances, my future, my career and with my ideas. My sophomore spring semester, I was admitted into the Robert H. Smith School of Business. Boy, was I ecstatic. God said to trust me and I did. One of my favorite verses is Psalm 56:3, “When I am afraid, I will put my trust in you.” This verse was so crucial to me and still is. I was so afraid that things would not work out or that God forgot about me or that I would fail a test and not be admitted in the business school. But what I have learned in this whole process is that God really cares for you, He truly has your back and He takes heed to the desires of your heart that align with His will. My faith has been stretched and tested and I am excited for the next place He is guiding me to. This is only the beginning!
The UD team thought it would be awesome to help you start the school year on the right foot. Here are our 5 tips for academic success.