“I didn't want to do it. I had a plan. But now I'm glad I chose it.”— Bethany Kunz
Bethany Kunz had reasons to stay where she was. After high school, she was working in Virginia, enjoying some independence, and taking time to decide what she wanted to study. College would be expensive, and she did not see the point of rushing into a degree without a direction.
Her mother suggested Touch the World’s Discipleship Year. Bethany initially resisted, but agreed to pray about it. As she considered the program, she came to believe it was the next step God wanted her to take.
The adjustment involved more than a new schedule or unfamiliar coursework. Living in close community meant investing in relationships when it would have been easier to keep some distance. She had to work through conflict and pay attention to the people around her.
Bethany was comfortable with practical responsibilities. Reflection and emotional growth were less familiar territory. The program asked her to slow down and examine how she was responding to situations, rather than simply finish the next task. Work that initially felt like an obligation began to make sense as she saw why it mattered.
Team projects and ministry responsibilities also helped her recognize leadership strengths and areas that needed attention. In her podcast conversation, she discussed preparing for outreach in Greece, the dynamics of her team, and the personal goals she wanted to work on. These were questions she was still working through during the year, not lessons she claimed to have mastered.
Her ACU coursework was integrated into that experience. Study, service, and community life gave her several ways to examine the same questions about faith, responsibility, and relationships.
Bethany did not need a complete career plan to describe what the year was teaching her. She could point to the daily practice of listening, handling conflict, and becoming more deliberate about her own growth. Those were responsibilities she could carry into whatever came next.
