I’d love to share some of my highlights from attending Souled Out this summer – a five-day event in Coleg y Bala, jam packed with exciting activities, opportunities to worship together and grow a closer relationship with God.

The theme this year was ‘Freedom’, which touched on how God has set us free through the gift of his Son Jesus Christ. This Souled Out was especially important, as it landed a week before my baptism. It gave me the opportunity to grow even closer to God before my baptism, and give the week to reflect and thank him for the work he had done in my life since giving my life to Christ. Souled Out has also provided me with a safe place to have fun with friends, ask questions about my faith and feel welcomed by everyone!

One of my personal highlights of the week was being able to bring my friend along and seeing her grow in faith. Watching her confidence grow by being so welcomed by the Souled Out community was amazing! Seeing how God worked in her life throughout the week, along with many more individuals was truly inspiring. Additionally, hearing individual’s personal testimonies and experiences of how God has shaped their lives reminded me of how God truly can change lives.

Worshipping together is always my favourite part about Souled Out. The atmosphere is absolutely incredible, and being able to worship together freely where there is no judgement, creates an indescribable experience. Souled Out offers the ability to praise God with like-minded people who love worshipping God. It was so powerful to see how God was working through everyone individually in the worship, especially in the after-hours session ‘Deeper’ which was a special opportunity to spend more time worshipping God.

The sessions were another highlight that enabled us to dive deeper into the theme of ‘Freedom’, where the speakers were able to explain the theme from the Bible and use different experiences and challenges from within our day to day lives. Personally, I also benefitted from the small groups held after the main talk, to discuss the questions and subjects that had been brought up by the speaker. It also gave me the opportunity to ask questions when I didn’t understand something.

Another highlight of the week were the different activities that were so much fun! They gave me the chance to get to know the new people that had come for the first time and build a closer relationship with my other friends whilst enjoying some fun games. Different options were also available such as, playing in the annual Souled Out football game or having a chilled afternoon in a local café filled with crafting activities. Throughout the week we visited a trampoline park, went bowling, had a hog roast and danced the night away on the annual Souled Out dance floor with chocolate covered strawberries only to name a few things!

Being able to experience how God was moving in individual lives in Souled Out was truly a blessing. Watching people be set free and learning that by Jesus’ sacrifice we have been set free from all guilt and comparison was amazing. I learnt that God loves us all equally and no one is better or worse; we are free and loved people by God.

Since coming to Souled Out, my life has completely changed. I have made friends for life and it was also the place where I gave my life fully to Jesus. To be able to come back every year is truly a blessing especially this year before I was baptised! Souled Out has been essential to the growth and depth of my faith, along with providing me with some of the best memories and lifelong friends supporting me through my Christian life. Souled Out gives you the opportunity to challenge your faith, have fun with amazing people and provides answers to any questions.  I would highly recommend that you come and experience the best 5 days of the summer! It’s too good to miss out on and I cannot wait for Souled Out 2024!!