At Liberty University Leah Ginion was studying digital media and graphic design and had her career path clearly mapped out. Having experience as a Ministerial Assistant (MA) with Bellevue Media and being part of her school’s creative marketing team, she had dreams of becoming a creative director one day. However, God had different plans that would challenge her perspectives and reshape her understanding of modern missions.
“As I was in my senior year, the Lord put on my heart, ‘Hey, you’re not going to work in media when you graduate,’” Leah said.
Like many young Christians, she faced that pivotal moment when God’s calling diverges from carefully laid plans. The shift began at Liberty’s Ministry Fair when Bellevue representatives opened a conversation with Leah about serving in the Missions office. Leah saw this as an opportunity to pursue the calling God had laid on her heart.
“Three things that the Lord showed me that I am really passionate about are discipleship, leadership development, and missions, and this opportunity to be an MA in the Missions office really aligned with everything that I was looking for,” Leah said. “That whole time of doing that I still wasn’t sure if it was the path the Lord was leading me down, but I was looking at it like, ‘I am just going to keep on walking toward this until God says stop.’”
While serving in the Missions office, Leah participated in Send Out Training, an experience that proved to have a huge impact on her calling to missions. The program provided her with in-depth teaching and hands-on experience in sharing the Gospel with others.
“I think a big thing that I took from Send Out Training is continuing to grow in a Gospel worldview and how to communicate that to people who have a very different worldview than me,” Leah said. “I think a lot of times people think that your own personal story is going to relate to every single person that you share the Gospel with, but that can push someone further away when you disregard what they already believe. Send Out Training has shown me that you have to be able to meet people where they are.”
Missions is never just an individual calling—it’s a calling for the Church too. Beyond the practical evangelism skills, Send Out Training also gave Leah a deeper appreciation for Bellevue’s investment in her ministry.
“It built a lot of confidence in me knowing that Bellevue not only sent me out but also cared enough to prepare me to be sent out,” Leah said. “They’re not just sending me out to go have fun and hope it goes well, but I know I have people all the way back in Memphis who genuinely care about my mission here in Medford.”
Today Leah serves as a resident at Living Hope Church in Medford, Oregon, where she has encountered a mission field that might surprise many American Christians—she works with people who have never opened a Bible or heard the most basic biblical stories.
“I think a lot of people would be shocked to know the amount of people in our own country who have never heard the Gospel and who have no experience with the God of the Bible,” Leah said. “I’m discipling a girl right now, and she came to know the Lord in October. But before then she had never heard of Adam and Eve, had never heard of Noah’s ark, and had never opened a Bible before in her life, and it’s so special that I am able to walk alongside her and help her grow.”
Through experiences like these, Leah has grown more passionate for the need of Jesus in America and now knows you don’t need to go overseas to bring people to Christ.
“I now am a firm believer that the Lord is calling people to be on mission here in America, and this is just as important as going across the world,” Leah said. “It is such a blessing to be trained and raised up by the church. I cannot deny that the Lord is at work here, and He is working so much in me to bring me closer to Him and to grow me, but God’s also using me as His vessel within His church to build the kingdom.”
Leah’s story serves as a reminder that God’s calling may not always align with our own plans, but by walking in faith and trusting His guidance we can find purpose and fulfillment in unexpected places. As Leah continues to spread the message of Christ in Medford, her ministry shows that every corner of the world is a mission field worth reaching.