Popularity.

Here at camp I'm frequently zapped back to high school - the remembrances aren't always pleasant.  

Tim and I have been talking frequently about how popularity is like a drug to high school students.  I wish someone had shared that analogy with me when I was 15.  I wish I had spent more time thinking about how God thought of me than how others thought of me.  I am thankful to have a chance to mentor a few girls from the youth group and to challenge them to think about how they view themselves and others.

There is one girl here who really amazes me.  Her heart for others is overwhelming at times.  There are a few kids who are, to be honest, really difficult to love, but this particular girl is able to see past any of the annoying behaviors and love them with the love of Christ.  I want to shake some of the kids who claim to follow God but who consistently ignore the least of these...and then I remember myself in high school and all the times I did the same in my striving to be something different than the person God created me to be.

 

God, please help me to love the way you love.  Please help me to see myself the way you see me.  Please help me to see others the way you see them and to love them.