As I am still a chaplain's assistant without a chaplain to assist for another month and a half or so, I've been doing odd jobs around campus. There's been a lot of filing, photocopying, paper cutting, and measuring out a variety of items. I'm looking forward to having a routine, and doing what I came here to do. That being said, this past week, I've gotten some tips that there are some girls going through some really tough situations, so they might want to talk to me. And suddenly my viewpoint shifted. I'm concerned for these girls, of course, and want to help them in any way I can, but at the same time, my head suddenly said, "WHAT AM I DOING HERE?" I don't have a chaplain here to help me figure out how to help these people. I've never had any training in how to be a counselor. I am nowhere near qualified to help these girls get through what they're dealing with. To be honest, I panicked.
And then I took a step back and actually thought about it. I'm NOT a chaplain/pastor/counselor/therapist/whatever other title I might add to the list. Does that mean I have nothing to offer these girls? Absolutely not. I started thinking about the ultimate example of Jesus as a 12 year old, sitting in the temple, completely baffling the teachers with his understanding. Someone it would stereotypically be so easy for an adult to disregard brought a whole new set of wisdom to the table without any type of fancy degree. So, maybe I haven't experienced the exact same thing these girls are going through, but I've had 25 years of life experiences, and I know for a fact that no one's life is sunshine and roses all the time. I might not have a fancy title to qualify me to help these girls, but maybe something I've gone through will be just what someone needs to hear about to know that things do get better. If nothing else, I've had amazing family members who have realized that even when people don't want to talk, sometimes sitting together is more powerful than any words that can be spoken.
