I remember the excitement of getting into college. I was going to attend one of the best public universities in North Carolina. I heard great things about the school, but I also heard that I would just be a number. “There are over 25,000 people at the university. Your professors are not going to know you. You are just a number in the midst of a crowd of people.”

On my first day of class I remember getting a Personal ID Number. I thought, well, maybe they are right. I am just a small number at this big university. Or am I a special, unique, individual who has the ability to be a great student?

The other day I went to a job fair. The line to enter was wrapped around the building. I could not help but question: within this job market am I just a number or am I really special? What will I allow myself to believe? As I entered the large conference room with hundreds of job seekers and about eighty employers, I thought about this job fair as a microcosm of the world.

There are probably millions of people on this planet without a job and there are also millions of people on this planet who are unique and super talented, with amazing gifts. This world is extremely big and stepping out into it can cause one to feel vulnerable, anxious, and doubtful–as if we are just a number in this big, bad world. But even in the midst of anxiety, my tradition teaches me that we are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139: 14 in the Christian Bible). We all have gifts. Each has received a gift (1 Peter 4: 10 in the Christian Bible).

In life there are sometimes trials and circumstances that cause us to move away from our gifts. Sickness, layoffs, depression, foreclosure, unhealthy relationships, unplanned pregnancies, death, divorce, fatigue, laziness, and the list goes on.

But, what do we do with our lives when unforeseen circumstances and trials come our way? Do we give up on our gifts and dreams or do we put our faith into action, use our gifts, and push to be the best we can be?

God believes that we are so special that God calls us by our name (Isaiah 43:1), not just a number. This is true at the university, job fair, on your current job, or anywhere else. If God believes that we are so special, we must also believe this for ourselves. In the movie, The Help, the main character would often tell a small child: You are kind, smart, and important. It’s true, believe it, don’t give up, keep pushing!

Be Encouraged,

Argrow ‘Kit” Evans

Photo by SCA Svenska Cellulosa Aktiebolaget, via Flickr Creative Commons.