Ranika Chaney Motivational Speaker & Spoken Word artist www.ranikasanchezchaney.com
attend Bible studies and would share the Gospel and personal experiences through spoken word.
My name is Ranika Chaney. I’m 26 years old and I am originally from a little place called Saint Rose, Louisiana, right outside of New Orleans. Praise God my mom took me to church when I was a little girl. I’m not sure where I would be if it were not for youth groups and Sunday school. I was 5 years old when I accepted Christ as my personal Savior and got baptized at Mt. Zion Baptist church in my hometown.
Upon returning to Loyola New Orleans, I realized more and more the importance of living a life fully for God and not just in parts. I began a Bible study with about 4 other friends that year (spring 2006). It was evident once we all returned from our different places after Katrina that we were seeking something much more to hold onto. We were looking for Christ.
In 2007, I graduated from Loyola University New Orleans in New Orleans, Louisiana. However, I would say that after Hurricane Katrina in 2005, my relationship with God changed in an incredible way. Like everyone else in New Orleans during that time, I had to leave the city. I attended Saint Louis University for one semester before returning back to New Orleans. In Saint Louis, I had one mentor, in particular, who accepted me with open arms and taught me more about Christ than I could ever expect. She helped me evaluate if I was living a life fully unto God’s glory. It was also in Saint Louis where I began to express myself more in the form of spoken word and poetry. I C.I.U
Furthermore, I decided to use my gifts even more so for God’s glory by taking an internship in Pittsburgh, Pa. So, for the summer of 2006 I was working with inner city youth, teaching them the love of Christ, and caring for them. It was also there that I met my husband. That’s an amazing story in itself, also. After graduation, I returned to Pittsburgh, Pa to live. That was a difficult time for me—leaving my family again, beginning seminary and eventually leaving seminary to work in youth ministry. It was also a difficult time being newly married and soon after becoming pregnant with our now 1 ½ year old, hilarious baby girl. I praise God for it all because He is showing me more and more—through good and Cont. on Pg. 16
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