Putting People First

One day, I was on my way to the college when I saw one of the students walking the opposite direction. My plan was to say hi and keep walking because I had a lot of things to do that day. As I approached her, I noticed she was crying. She explained to me that she was having a very bad day and that she was being made fun of in class by some students. She told me that she got up and walked out of the class and was planning to go home. I decided that she really needed someone to talk to, so we went found a place to sit and talk alone. In that time, she revealed to me that she was suicidal and had been struggling with self worth and cutting herself. I couldn't think of any words I could say to her, so I went over to her and hugged her for a long time as she cried. I prayed for her and when I was finished, she looked at me with tears in her eyes and said, "Thank you. You have no idea how much this means to me."

As I reflect back to that day, I am so thankful that I took the time to stop and listen to that girl. If I would have kept the focus on myself and the work I had to do, that girl could've been alone with no one to talk to and maybe even hurt herself. I am confident that God's calling for me here is to befriend the students and encourage them in their personal walks, especially the broken ones. I discovered so much joy after having that conversation with her. I believe God was telling me, "See, you can be blessed so much when you put others before yourself."