Music inspired my life since preschool. I took up the violin in second grade and continued playing since. Once I joined my teen church band, I have been section leader, principal, vice concertmaster, and lead violinist. Ironically, I hated going to the teen ministry. I knew no one there except my aunt and uncle, who rarely came to church. Looking back, joining the teen church band made me more sociable, improved on my musical ability and matured during ninth grade.

Some teens may be uncomfortable when studying Christianity, but when surrounded by friends the experience was less awkward. Most teens who went to the teen ministry lived 5 to 20 minutes away, recognizing their friends from high school. Because my commute to church was about an hour I did not have time to meet new people after service. I was excluded from conversations and friendships. This was why the teen ministry always irked me. Sunday was always a nightmare because my parents would literally force me to go to the teen ministry.

Mark Bowen, a teen ministry leader, wanted a teen worship band to make the teen ministry more welcoming. He heard I played violin, then asked if I wanted to join. At first, I refused. In my mind, being part of a teen worship band would make my life worse at the teen ministry. I feared exclusion in the band. However, my parents urged me to join. By December 2017, I was officially part of the teen church band as a solo violinist. Our band had a pianist, drummer, bassist, vocalists, and guitarists. At that point in my life, my music knowledge was quite narrow, so it seemed ridiculous for a violin to play with instruments associated with rock. I now understand how wrong I was after the first performance of our band.

While I had tons of experience from performing on stage with my school orchestra, I never played alone before. Naturally, this made me nervous. My fear of playing solo diminished after I heard my violin harmonizing with the other instruments. Mark later called the band The Willing because we were “willing” to perform. A few weeks after performing together, The Willing started building relationships. I became friends with the vocalists: Shalom, a junior, and Jordan, a senior. We shared music, bonded over jokes, and performed for each other. I expected news about our band spread around the church. What was unexpected was a visit from my favorite musician.

During one of our rehearsals, an optimistic African American lady walked into the teen ministry. I recognized her instantly. My eyes lit up. She walked towards me and said, “I thought I heard a fiddle playing! And I knew it was not me, so I followed the sound.” This was Charisa Rouse, the violinist who played in the main sanctuary. I admired her playing, hoping to play like her someday. The thought of meeting her always made me anxious because she was so talented. Ms. Charisa was my favorite musician and she was speaking to me. After service, he told me about playing the violin in jazz bands across America and tips on how to improvise and practice. She reminded me of the most important thing to keep in mind when playing violin. You are playing for God. It is something easily forgotten. He gave me musical talents. In return, I worship Him as a thank you. Though it is fun to play the violin on stage, I take worship seriously. Being part of The Willing is a huge responsibility. Overtime I learned how to manage my time between school performances and The Willing rehearsals. My violin skills have improved because of Ms. Charisa. The Willing is why I am able to play so smoothly today. The teen ministry became something I wanted to do. I appreciate the teen ministry for helping me grow in my faith and also my maturity.