Recently, I had been feeling very frustrated with the lack
of depth in my relationships with my teammates. They are all great people, but
I just have not really connected with them in the same way I have connected
with my friends back home. I had many excuses for why that was: I was too busy
with ministry; the race is only 11 months long and I will probably not see
these people again; I don’t have a lot in common with them so we are just not
going to connect on that deeper level. My subconscious attitude was, “why
bother getting close and investing? It all just seems like a waste of time.”
Feedback time in Peru
However, this weekend, that all changed. While our squad
leaders, Bill and his wife Katie, were visiting for a few days, Bill and I
spent some time chatting. During one of those conversations, Bill told me about
a two-week graduate school counseling class that he took. The class included a
group counseling portion to help give some hands on training. The students in
his class were hesitant about really opening up during the group counseling
because they figured in two weeks they would never see the other students
again. The professor responded by reminding the students that everything on
this earth is temporary. Some things might last longer than others but they
will all fade away at some point. The key is to make the most of everyone that
you come in contact with. Next, the professor told the students about one time
when he only spent one hour with a man and how during that short conversation,
God used that man’s words to have a profound impact on the professor’s life.
Just one hour. That short amount of time changed the
professor’s life. So why is it that we think we must know someone or have years
committed to being with someone before we will open up and let them in? Do we
not trust God to work through small relationships just as much as we do through
big ones?
It is really just a choice. Yes, you may not connect fully
with the person, but that does not mean that God does not have something for you
to teach them or something for them to teach you. All you have to do is choose
to be intentional with the time God has given you to be with them.
This month, I am choosing to be intentional.
