Goodbyes are usually bittersweet. They mark the end of one chapter and the beginning of a new one. In this case, it’s the end of my time as Religion Correspondent at The Royal Gazette, and the start of an exciting, new journey as I take steps to launch a global digital platform — one that I hope will profile inspiring millennial women of faith from around the world and greatly touch the lives of others. Please stay tuned for more details on that in early 2020. In the meantime, here’s a little insight into my inspiration behind writing for the Religion pages. According to The Royal Gazette’s online archives, today’s story marks my 370th Religion piece — or at least my stories with the word “religion” in them.It was around late 2013 when I first felt a nudge from God to take on this position. However, it has to be said I didn’t act immediately. Months later, in the spring of 2014 while attending a church ministry event as a youth leader, God’s instructions for me grew louder. I heard a crystal-clear direction from Him to use The Royal Gazette’s platform to share the powerful testimonies of His goodness. I also began to believe that one day I could maximise my passion for travelling by profiling incredible stories about believers from around the globe. At the point of hearing the call, I was still working at the newspaper full time as a Lifestyle reporter. There was no extra pay involved for writing for the Saturday paper — at first — so I battled internally as to whether or not to take it on. Eventually, though, I acted in obedience. Over the past five years, I’ve seen the Lord bless my life in many different ways through the Religion section. When my faith was running low, the powerful examples of others taught me about God’s unfailing love and encouraged me not to give up on my relationship with Him. They have also inspired me to take greater leaps of faith in my own personal life. During my time as a Religion Correspondent, I got married, left steady employment to start my own business and even became a new mom. I’m eternally grateful to The Royal Gazette for providing a significant platform for the island’s religious community. Juanae Crockwell will take up the reins next week as the new Religion Correspondent and I can’t wait to see how God will use her for His honour and glory.