Words worth speaking

When Jeremiah Lewis was 14 years old, he wrote down three goals on a sheet of paper: to be a youth pastor, to be a signed gospel rapper and to be a millionaire.

One of Lewis’ dreams came true in February 2009 when he became a youth pastor through Omega Baptist Church, but he said his path to get there was different than a lot of people in his family.

Lewis, 26, is the son of a pastor. Raised in the church, Lewis said he frequently assisted with his father’s charity work, but as a teenager got off course.

“At a certain age you have to find yourself,” Lewis said. “When I was 14 years old I was smoking weed. I lost my virginity at 16, so from 16 to 21 I was out there pretty far.”

Lewis added, “But at 21 it was like a switch went off, I just understood that I can’t live like this forever, going from female to female, talking to people about God, but not really being about what I was talking about.”

After Lewis got back on course, he enrolled for classes at Sinclair Community College and concentrated on becoming a youth pastor.

“My training (to become a youth pastor) wasn’t necessarily a certificate or a degree. It was more years of being talented, sitting back, viewing others, being humble and building my character,” he said.

After performing what he felt was one of his best sermons at Omega Baptist Church in November 2008, Lewis said his pastor called him and told him it was his time. To prepare himself for youth ministry, Lewis talked to other youth pastors around the country and read books on the subject. One of the first things Lewis did as a youth pastor was console the parents of slain high school classmate Thomas Watson.

“I was actually asked to pray the day after he was shot, and that was probably one of the toughest things I’ve had to do in my life,” Lewis said. “The mother had lost Thomas’s father the same way she lost her son, which was through gun violence.”

Another task Lewis is responsible for as youth pastor is leading bible study to about 50 kids every Wednesday, as well as mentoring an additional seven. Lewis said gun violence, drugs and abortion are some of the themes his youth group has to deal with. To give them alternative activities to take part in and to surround them with positive people, Lewis said he organizes basketball games and throws a video game party once a month. Lewis said he frequently text messages the members of his youth group to check in on them, especially the ones he feels are most at risk.

“One of the biggest things I’ve learned through my experience is every young person needs to be treated as an individual,” Lewis said. “A lot of people have no one they can turn to. No one they can trust. So when somebody does show up and they show them that they’re genuine and they treat them like an individual, it really hits them in the heart.”

Lewis said one of his favorite things to talk about is his fiancé, whom he has never had sex with.

“She has come from a number of different hard situations. Her father was a drunk, but now she’s in college at Wright State (University) and only has two more years to go for her degree,” Lewis said. “It just shows that you can do anything you put your mind to and that adversity builds character.”