OH, hello!

God has this elusive way of making you like someone you don’t really like. It’s amazing how He does it with me. Okay so you won’t get confused with how random that thought just came right at you, let me give you a bit of a background about me.
I am the kind of person who likes everybody and I like to think everybody likes me too. Haha! I am kind and sweet, if I do say so myself. Not to brag but it’s just who I am! But I can look like I’m not empathetic when someone gets physically ill, because the nurse in me just pops right out, and I’m on the nurse mode (even though I haven’t really practiced this profession.. )
Anyway, I do like people. I’m laying it out there. But there are just some moments when certain people don’t rub off on me well. Like, I just met them and I have no idea who they are, but I already know I’m not gonna like them. I can sense they have an ‘attitude’, and so far I’ve always been right, 99% of the time. I’d like to think it’s a gift. haha!
God, though, in His awesomeness and loving personality, calls all of us to love one another. I’d like to argue that I love people, but some of them I just don’t like. I don’t hate them, but I don’t particularly like them either. And that’s okay! What I’m saying is, because of our love for people, we will eventually like them.. I don’t know when eventually will come but it will!
That’s where I’m going with this. Since coming to college, there’s this one person I met who is challenging to be with. You know those people who just have different wavelength of thinking than you. And one particular close friend of mine also have a hard time with her, especially since they live in the same house. I know I know, you might be saying she should just move out. But the thing is, we can’t always run when challenges come, right? And in her situation, she prayed about it and felt the Spirit of God tell her to stay.
Recently though, I had the chance of serving alongside this person in a conference, and we’ve been serving together for a week. I didn’t ‘not like’ the situation, but I just took it in as it is. It’s not like I have to hang out with her all the time. But then!!! Remember when I told you God has an elusive way of making you like someone you’re not a fan of? Well, somehow I found myself hangin’ out with this chica during our break times. It was still quite challenging at times, but then suddenly there was a shift in our conversations. And I began to notice the changes in her. I saw how more giving she is in our conversations, how more pastoral she is with people. She cares about the odd one out person. She listens, and she doesn’t argue anymore. I wasn’t looking for changes, yet I saw them. And I began to realize how God is so amazing, because He didn’t only change her, but He changed me through her.
Sometimes in life we can be too caught up with our pre-judgments of people. They’re too popular for me, they’re too smart for me, too talented, too cool, and we let those reasons bound us from reaching out to them. I am so guilty of this a lot of times. As I’d like to say, with some people, I just don’t have a “natural” flow of conversation. And it’s weird for me because I’m usually good at talking with people, even strangers (my friends can attest to this).
I have learned how to challenge myself with reaching out more to people, or even as simple as just starting to engage with them in small talks. I am in no way saying these things because I’m an expert at this- far from it even! But we shall not despise small beginnings, even with that simple “hi” can become deeper than the Mariana trench kind of friendship.
I hope you’re having a lovely day! Thanks for reading.

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