Meet OverTheHump LA

Today we’d like to introduce you to OverTheHump LA.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Over The Hump started as just a one time motivational talk about how Jesus saved me (Charles) in one of the most difficult seasons of my life. People were so moved and inspired by it, but nothing immediately came of it. After years had passed, God aligned me with two of my good friends, Deshaunna and Amber.

With each of us on our own paths searching for a community to grow and connect with God, we decided to create a monthly bible study known today as Over The Hump LA. What started as a one time encounter of how God saved me, OTHLA grew into a TEAM of 5 people who express and utilize biblical principles & their own story, about how Jesus saved them as well.

It’s hard to find a healthy body of believers in LA without being judged, especially for the younger generation (18-35). That’s why, instead of complaining about the lack of, we decided to create that community ourselves! We have the goal of representing Jesus as he actually is represented in the bible vs who we “hear” he is!

We like to describe Over The Hump LA as a modern day bible study with a networking twist that’s made for Young LA by Young LA!

In terms of networking, we have a segment called “OTH Spotlight”, where we highlight entrepreneurs or creatives in our community that’s doing their thing and give them a platform to expand and grow their business and/or brand. In addition we provide vending opportunities for businesses that want to expand their reach in the South Central community.

To simply put it, we’re just a group of real people discussing real problems, to a real God, with the hopes of creating a judgment-free & comfortable atmosphere in order to help people get over the hump of those everyday problems, so they can see and meet the loving and merciful Jesus for themselves.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Absolutely not! Lol, When dealing with Christianity, people expect you to live a perfect life. And the team & I are far from perfect! In the beginning, this created anxiety and insecurities in myself that made me think I wasn’t properly equipped to lead. But it wasn’t until I prioritized what the bible said vs. what people think the bible says that the team and I began to make progress.

The world says you have to be perfect to be a Christian, but JESUS says you just have to be willing! Moses had a speech problem, David was a murderer and a cheater, Noah was a drunk, and Jesus was a man that had a regular “9-5” job as a carpenter, yet God used each of these people to change lives forever!

Once we were able to realize that God doesn’t call the equipped, but he equips the called (Hebr. 13:21), we were able to get over the hump of the insecurities we all had and actually used those same shortcomings to show people in our community that are just like us that He doesn’t want our perfection, He wants our pursuit!

And once we start operating out of Love from God, instead of fear from the world… We start to see results that you can’t argue against. We don’t even have a building (yet), but the fact that we average 80-100 people (from the age of 18-35) to come worship Jesus, IN A BACKYARD, OFF OF FIG & IMPERIAL, is living proof that obstacles mean nothing to God!

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I think what sets OTH apart is the diverse group of people that make up the over the hump family. We all have different careers but just come together for the common cause of spreading the gospel!

For example, I work in the film industry as a Director, Camera Operator, and actor, while other members on our lead team range from a full-time brand strategist, servers, teachers, c.e.o.’s of successful clothing brands, etc.

The list goes on! I just think it’s a testament that debunks the myth of “if you pursue God, you can’t do anything else but that, and that your life will be boring if you choose to follow Jesus.” lol. That’s at least what I thought prior to realizing that God WANTS to give us the desires of our hearts (Psalm 37:4). He PUT THEM THERE! He just wants us to use them to bring Him glory and not ourselves.

But I believe having so many people with diverse backgrounds gives us the ability to reach more people that other organizations might not be able to relate to.

How do you think about luck?
Nipsey once quoted that “Luck in reality is just when preparation meets opportunity”. I’m a firm believer in that. Only thing that I would add is, the only reason I was able to survive growing up in the hood is because God was protecting me in those moments when I was not prepared to endure through certain hardships on my own.