God has been putting teen moms on my heart, leading me to pursue ministry to them. In December, I finally had the opportunity to meet with some teen moms and support them in an activity. It was such an encouragement to me, and so precious to be with the girls and get to know them a little bit. I am aware of many of the challenges these girls face, but hearing about them from the girls themselves was different than learning about them from others. One of the other leaders at the project was a great role model for the girls, because she had come from many of the same challenges, whereas I do not. Hearing her share, I deeply appreciated her experience and the connection it gave her with this population.

In contrast, I have many barriers to overcome to build these relationships. As I considered the many advantages I have had in life that might keep the teen moms from relating to me – a solid, loving family, financial security, a safe place to live, prestigious degrees, numerous opportunities – for the first time I truly counted all these as loss. Before, I could understand that all these things were “less than” compared to the surpassing value of knowing Jesus, but now, I measure them as actual negatives at least in that they hinder my ability to relate to these people Jesus wants me to love. There is something freeing in this new perspective. It prepares me to go into these relationships with an attitude that I have much to learn, not as one who has all the answers to give them. While I still value and appreciate all the blessings and gifts in my life, I hold them with more open hands and view them with a more Christ-like perspective.

But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ. Philippians 3:7-8