One By One

There once was a wise man who used to go to the ocean to do his writing. He had a habit of walking on the beach before he began his work. One day he was walking along the shore and as he looked down the beach, he saw a human figure moving like a dancer.
He smiled to himself to think of someone who would dance to the day. So he began to walk faster to catch up. As he got closer, he saw that it was a young man and the young man wasn't dancing, but instead was reaching down to the shore, picking up something and very gently throwing it into the ocean. As he got closer he called out, "Good morning! What are you doing?" The young man paused, looked up and replied, "Throwing starfish in the ocean." "I guess I should have asked, why are you throwing starfish in the ocean?" "The sun is up and the tide is going out. If I don't throw them in then they'll die." "But young man, don't you realize that there are miles and miles of beach and starfish all along it. You can't possibly make a difference!" The young man listened politely then bent down and picked up another starfish and threw it into the sea past the breaking waves and said, "It made a difference for that one."

I received a newsletter from one of our community partners today and this poem was on the inside front cover. I needed this today. Something just clicked...

I only have a few weeks left at the office, working with some of the greatest people and the ability to reach out and lend a helping hand to people that need it the most. I've decided that in the few weeks that I have left at work, I'll be able to reach out, one by one, and give a helping hand.
Not only can I give help and support when it comes to literacy and education but I can also give help and support when it comes to love of Christ. I work in the perfect setting to witness and show God's love so for the next few weeks and I'm going to make more of a conscious effort to reach out. When people walk through our front door for help, most of them are at their all time low. They have finally admitted to themselves that they cannot read and they need help. Just them walking through the door is a huge challenge so they need uplifted and loved in the worst way.
For the next 6 weeks, I'm going to make sure that I bend down, pick up and rescue as many "starfish" as I can. I know that I won't be able to rescue them all, but I will make a difference for the ones that I can.