At sixteen, it’s tough to change the world. Despite the vigor, excitement and optimism of teenagers, we lack the influence to make major changes. Personally, I have always been motivated to change the world. I want to save struggling nations, preserve the environment and ensure a peaceful global environment. These goals, however, are far above my sphere of influence. Despite this, I have learned to channel my enthusiasm for improving our world by helping out the community. Recently, however, my commitment had been tested in a new opportunity to perform service.

This new opportunity came at a church fair. My mom suggested that I look into becoming a Eucharistic minister. The church is often short-handed on volunteers to distribute the “body of Christ” during mass, and they always encourage younger members to get involved. It seemed like a perfect opportunity. Despite all these incentives, I couldn’t help but feel a bit apprehensive. Only a limited amount of people were willing to volunteer, and none of them were close to my age. Not to mention, by becoming a Eucharistic minister, I would have to be in the center of attention of the entire church during mass. Furthermore, by displaying my strong belief in my faith, I would be risking the judgment of peers. I was unsure if I could find the confidence needed to help my church community.

In the end, my passion for changing the world and my strong religious ties gave me the confidence I needed. I recognized that although I may not have the power to stop global warming, or achieve equal opportunity for all human beings, but I could start changing the world by taking small steps. By becoming a Eucharistic minister, I could contribute my zeal for service by solving problems close to home. Additionally, I realized that this would be an excellent opportunity to stand up for my beliefs and show that I am a proud and active member of the Catholic Church. I came to discover that it didn’t matter what other people thought; I strongly believe in both community service and Catholicism and had no reason to hide it. Regardless of my prior insecurities, thanks to my belief in the benefits of service and my personal values, I can now be proud of the fact that I am slowly starting to make the world a better place as a Eucharistic minister.

In the end, the opportunity to become an active church member gave me far more than the chance to help out the community. The experience allowed me to embrace both my beliefs and my self-confidence. Moreover, it has taught me that changing the world is not impossible, if taken in small steps. I learned how to channel my charitable motivations so that someday I can make a difference to the global community. In the end, the path to becoming an active church member, although difficult, fueled the fire of my inspiration in continuing to service both my local and global community.