Q: What expression and year of Uptick did you participate in?
A: I was a part of the Uptick Catalyst cohort in 2023 in the Tidewater region of Virginia.
Q: What is your current ministry or vocational position and where do you serve?
A: I currently work as a Neighborhood Development Specialist for the City of Hampton. I work with a team that facilitates community building efforts in Hampton to foster social connectedness, strengthen neighborhood vitality, and increase civic engagement.
Q: How has Uptick influenced where you are right now?
A: I went through Uptick in one of the most difficult years of my life. I was navigating personal and vocational loss during that year. Getting a recurring opportunity to pay attention to God’s voice and to process my own internal world was a lifeline that guided me through that tumultuous season. On the other side of my Uptick experience, I was able to reframe my sense of calling and leadership beyond a role or title. I transitioned out of vocational ministry shortly after being in the cohort, but I still carry a sense of calling to disciple-making because Uptick helped me form deeper roots.
Q: What is your favorite Uptick tool or takeaway?
A: The Circle is certainly a favorite because it gets the most “use mileage.” Actively contemplating what God is saying to me has cultivated an intimate and conversational relationship with God that I’m deeply grateful for.
Q: How is God getting your attention at the moment?
A: In this season, the words “exile” and “desert” carry deep meaning for me. I sense God inviting me into quieter rhythms and marginalized and less resourced spaces in order to truly discern where and how He is at work in this season. In navigating being called out to desert spaces, I am also learning to embrace how to be content with little (Phillipians 4:12)
Q: Are there any other life updates that you’d love to share with your Uptick Alumni network?
A: None at the moment, so I’ll just share my Life scripture: “So you, by the help of your God, return, hold fast to love and justice, and wait continually for your God” (Hosea 12:6).
