Zach Luciano - guest blogging

Zach is doing his High School senior internship at the church and has taken the time to share his thoughts and encouragement for you. Regardless of what stage of life you're in, Zach's advice is relevant. Take a minute and read his blog post.


Hello everyone! My name is Zach Luciano and I am currently a senior at West Geauga High School. A very exciting time is approaching for a lot of us including myself. I am about to graduate from high school and move on to my next chapter by attending Azusa Pacific University in California. Whether you're an incoming freshman, simply going up another grade, or even a parent summer can be a very exciting time for everyone.

These past four years of high school have honestly gone by so quickly. My spiritual walk with Christ has grown so rapidly and I owe it to Fellowship Bible Church. Middle school was when my faith started being challenged and shaped that eventually led into my walk when I entered high school. One of my biggest pieces of advice for incoming freshman or anyone not involved yet is to get hooked up with a house group. You'll hear all your high school leaders rave about house groups and there's a reason for it. My house group met on Tuesday nights and it has impacted my life in an indescribable way. There is truly nothing like having a body of believers the same age as you, going through the same doubts and temptations you might be going through. I'm not going to lie to you and say high school was all peaches and rainbows but house group was something that gave me the fuel to carry me through the week and be a light to others around me.

Another great opportunity that Fellowship offers are mission trips. This is an amazing way to strengthen your faith during the summer. I remember going on SOS during middle school and having the most wonderful experiences of seeing God work in people's lives and sharing my testimony to others. In High School I went on the Nashville trips and they reminded me a lot of SOS. I remember during the evening worship times I could feel God placing his hands on my shoulders and letting his presence be known. I encourage you students if you haven't been on a mission trip to definitely consider it. Don't make excuses or let money be the issue because God always provides. Mission trips are a huge way to get involved in the youth and ultimately strengthen your relationship with the Lord.

During my time at West G I tried to never be ashamed of my faith. Freshman, sophomore, and Junior year weren't too tough but senior year rolled around and he used me in such a huge way. I started an FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes) at my school with some of friends that actually attended my house group. I led this group and did lessons every Thursday for my school. God used me in a way that put essentially a target on me. The other three years of high school I didn't go out of my way to talk about Jesus but now God gave me an outlet to openly teach his word. How crazy is He? I encourage you all to attend or lead a type of FCA (or some other campus ministry) at your school to reach out to those who might be broken. High school is full of kids that need Jesus so bad and I urge you to be that light for them.

As this school year wraps up and summer rolls in we can sometimes put God on hold. With some more time on your hands try to be actively seeking God. I know you've heard that a million times but it's very important. God wants to have a relationship with you and in order to be spiritually fit for next year it is important to surround ourselves with the lord. Get connected with your friends that will build you up in christ, Make time every day to read the word or a devotional. I'll be honest and say I'm not the biggest fan of reading for a long period of time so don't feel like you have to sit in front of your bible for hours and hours. 15, 30, 45 minutes of your day won't kill you and once you get in a habit it will feel like no time. The last major thing is obviously is to pray. Just like reading your Bible, praying can feel like a chore sometimes. God wants to have a relationship with you and it can be so refreshing to just have that sit down time talking to God. Building your relationship with God this summer will prep you to go into your next school year with a fire inside you for God.

As I make my way to Azusa I will forever remember the time I had at Fellowship. I am very thankful to have had the friends and opportunities that I have had that contributed to my walk with God. Wherever I end up I know that Fellowship will always be my home and God will always have my back. Psalm 121: 8 "The Lord will guard your going out and your coming in From this time forth and forever."