Sometimes you seek an opportunity to serve God; sometimes the opportunity finds its way to you.
A women’s bible study leader temporarily without a group to lead, I was feeling lost and suffering from spiritual atrophy when an opportunity to lead a high school girls’ bible study came along. I confess I was nervous to jump into the realm of teen girls, as I had gladly said goodbye to those years, which were fraught with personal pain. But the teacher in me couldn’t resist this opportunity. I prayed hard and took the plunge.
I had a blast! And I think the girls did, too. Much of it was as I expected. Nervous glances melting into heart conversations with genuine sharing of fears and dreams.
What I didn’t expect was Katie.
About the third week of our study the doorbell rang as our discussion was getting underway. On my porch stood three timid girls I’d never seen. My first thought was they were about to try to sell me something, but my focus quickly changed as I realized they were there to join the study. As I hustled to gather chairs and books for them, I learned that one girl was new to our town, our school, our church. The other girls in our group had encouraged her to join the study and I suspect that in order to accept their invitation she needed to bring along a little bravery in the form of two old friends from her former school. One of those friends was Katie.
Not living nearby, Katie wasn’t able to join us for many of our lessons, but she befriended all the girls on Facebook and faithfully read our book each week. As much as she possibly could be, she was part of the group.
By September, all the girls were getting ready to return to school and I wanted to encourage them and pray for their specific needs. On the first day of school, I took advantage of our Facebook group to ask how they were doing. While school was already challenging for many, the greatest cry for help came from Katie.
She confessed a broken heart and needed a shoulder to cry on. I gave her that and more, walking her through her healing with biblical teaching, words of encouragement and prayer. In the process, the cords of friendship wound tightly, binding us together as spiritual mother and daughter.
It’s been nearly six months since Katie first landed on my doorstep. Little did I know what was in store for us. I can hardly express enough thanks to God for the blessing of being her mentor. And I know she would say the same. Hi Katie! {wave}
Sometimes you step through a door of opportunity. Sometimes the opportunity arrives at your door and steps right into your life.
Be ready and watchful or you just might miss it.
In hope,
Shelli
About Shelli Bourque
What a blessing to mentor this young girl. I have found that “teen” ministry is NOT the ministry most women want for some reason, but if you can invest in the life of a teen girl, you have a nautural ministry to them when they are young moms in just a few short years. A perfect start to a Titus 2 ministry.
Thank you for the encouragement, Sarah. Now that I’ve taken the plunge, I wonder why I was ever afraid. I have a Titus 2 mom and now it’s such a blessing to be one! I agree that it’s a needed ministry and one I’ll be in for years to come.
Mentoring young women is such a blessing and a gift from God! Being a Titus 2 woman is exactly what we’re called to be! Thank you for sharing this story; it reminds me that every relationship we form really does matter and can be used by God to change lives.