If only I were 22 again...

The other day in the Life Centre, I was talking to a few of the community members about my plans for my upcoming 22nd birthday. I was complaining that I wasn't actually turning 22, i was turning "21 again", because 22 means that you're getting old (which to me seemed like a reasonable argument! lol)

Penny (not her real name) is in her mid 30's, heavily addicted to heroin. She has been since her teen years. She's made some very bad decisions during her life, and feels utterly hopeless about it all. Penny and John (her partner) are drug dealers, and are known for standing over people, taking their Centrelink payments off them. Up until recently, I had a really hard time having compassion for Penny and John, knowing that they too were made in Gods image, but their behaviour and the injustice they committed against so many people just made me so angry.

The more and more I think about it, the more and more the truth hits home. "There's a reason people are like they are" runs through my mind. People are a product of their experiences, and unfortunately they've gotten trapped in a vicious cycle. People took advantage of them, and now they take advantage of others.

But it all came together for me in that conversation in the Life Centre, when Penny, buttering her toast, heard some of our conversation.

"I'll be 22.... sooooo ooooooooooooooooolllllllllllddd!!!" Ness says

"I wish I was 22 again, I'd change so much in my life if I knew I'd end up like this" Penny says

And my heart sank. At that moment, Gods love and compassion poured through me and something clicked. I saw Penny for who she was. A broken, hurting, vulnerable, child of God. I saw her through Gods eyes.

Penny's statement was simple, but I haven't been able to get it out of my head since. It helped me to see Penny in a whole new light, but it also challenged me. In 10 years time when I'm in my 30's, what will I look back on and think "gee I wish I would have changed that!". Will it be, Gee, I wish I wasn't so disobedient to God? Or, Gee I wish I took time out of my life to invest in my relationships with my family. We have an opportunity now to make changes in our lives so we don't live in a "gee I wish i had" mentality in 10 years time.

Jesus came so that we could have life in all its fullness. Anything else is second best.

Jesus came so that we could have hope for a better future. I pray that for Penny.

For Him Alone
Ness