Post by:
Anna Edwards
My name is
Anna Edwards and I am a 1L student at Regent University School of Law. I was
born and raised in Greenville, South Carolina and graduated from Clemson
University with a Bachelor of Science in Economics and a minor in Non-Profit
Leadership. Before attending law school, I had the privilege of working for a
global nonprofit organization in East Africa. While working in East Africa, a desire
has surfaced within me to lay my life down and partner with God as he brings
emotional, spiritual, physical, and mental freedom to his people. My initial
plan was to move from America to East Africa to work for a global nonprofit
missions organization. I desired to abandon the world’s definition of success
and devote my whole life to love and serve God and his people. However, I was
ignorant that becoming a missionary abroad was not the only way to devote my
life to service.
During my
second three-month stint in East Africa, I was heavily exposed to human rights
violations such as child marriages and female genital mutilation. It was
through this experience that God began to open my eyes to the depth of injustice
faced by many of His children abroad. God began to reveal to me that I was to
attend law school and obtain a legal education and become a surrendered instrument
of God to bring spiritual and physical freedom to His people. My perspective
shifted as I realized that truly loving and serving God looks like pouring out
my everyday life and gifts before God, rooting myself in Him as He faithfully
leads me into the fullness of what He wants to do through my life. I believe I
am to make Him known to others by being an intercessor for the Lord’s justice
and liberty for His people.
Attending
law school was a greater leap of faith for me than moving to East Africa, but
it has quickly become one of the steps I am the most grateful for. At Regent, I
have discovered the passions God has placed within me to serve Him are not
exclusive from the legal skills He has granted me. I desire to use my degree as
an instrument surrendered to the Lord so that His name is multiplied among the
nations and generations. I hope to work with individuals across the globe by
advocating for the acknowledgment of their humanity and injustices committed
against them while also working towards the implementation and continuation of
the rule of law in third world countries.
This
semester I have the privilege of joining the student staff of Center for Global
Justice, which was a determining factor in my decision to attend Regent. I am humbled
by the opportunity to be trained and equipped by professors and classmates that
model what it looks like to be a peace seeker and a defender of truth. This
spring, I am honored to be working on a project for the International Justice
Mission through researching the number of human trafficking victims per country
in Eastern Europe reported by different international enforcement bodies. This
research will help accomplish my team’s goal of supplying research on current
legislation and identifying gaps concerning compensation and rehabilitation
measures for victims of human trafficking in Eastern Europe.
This
semester I am excited to continue discovering how the passions God has placed
within me to advocate for the oppressed in society merge with the skills and opportunities
presented in the legal field. I am truly grateful to attend a law school that
provides students with exposure to the field of human rights law and raises up
a generation of attorneys that believe in justice for all people.
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