The Power of One

by Catrina LeSure

I remember my first day at a new school.  In the middle of 5th grade, my parents ripped me away from those nearest and dearest to me to place me into a whole new world where I knew no one.  I cried as I walked for the first time to the bus stop.  I cried sitting next to my brother on the bus.  I wiped my tears as I got off the bus to put on a strong face.  Then I walked to winding halls through students who all looked as scary as I felt they were to Mrs. Mills' class.  She was a nice enough lady.  She showed me to my locker and showed me where to sit.  But I was still terrified and alone in a sea of kids that didn't seem to realize I existed.  

As the kids walked into class they made confused looks at me as they made their way to their seats but then went about life like I didn't matter.  Then...it happened.  Katelyn Dunn sat down next to me.  She smiled at me as she took out a pencil from her desk.  I smiled back the best I could.  But when she said "hi", I felt a lot of the stress and pressure go away.  I didn't know that Mrs. Mills had assigned me to Katelyn.  I didn't know that Katelyn had been prepared for a new student.  I didn't know that Katelyn had been given the special task of making me feel at home.  I didn't find any of that stuff out until much later.  All I knew was that Katelyn Dunn was nice to me when I was afraid of being eaten alive.  She sat with me at lunch and introduced me to her friends at recess.  She invited me to her birthday party and made me feel like I was where I'd always meant to be.

I haven't forgotten Katelyn these 20 years later.  She stands out in my mind because she was just one person but she changed my world.  She didn't do anything particularly incredible when you think about it though.  That's the thing about the power of 1.  The power of 1 doesn't come from being a super hero (although Thor is pretty dreamy...).  The power of 1 comes simply from being the 1.  

As a youth leader I am often distracted by the power of the crowd.  I find myself trying to plan events to make everyone happy.  I get overwhelmed trying to make sure my message reaches the masses.  But every so often I am reminded of the power of 1.  It comes when I spend a day with one family doing a food drive and reward the three kids with cocoa.  I hear about their days and their lives and I am reminded that they are not them.  They are each incredible individuals.  I find when I'm teaching one of my teens to write a campout budget and she spends the afternoon talking about her favorite memories from campouts gone by.  I am reminded that some of the best parts of our programs are not the parts we planned but the parts where God simply decides to show up.  

But there are times when I'm also overwhelmed by a feeling that I am just one.  Doing both youth and children's ministry means that I can accidentally go months without participating in meaningful adult ministry experiences.  It can feel lonely and isolating and seem like the only people that get you are the other volunteers that are as burned out as you are.  Having the power of 1 doesn't mean I am all powerful.  But every so often I am reminded of the power of One.  It comes when I get to the end of a VBS week too tired to put one foot in front of the other and find that some of my kids have made the decision to accept Jesus as their forever friend.  I am reminded that my efforts are not for me but for the One who truly matters.  It comes in the form of a parent whose child has been struggling with drugs hugging you and telling you how grateful she is for you standing by her through it all.  I am reminded that I can't fix everything but I know Someone who can.  

There is a power in one that I think we often overlook.  But I am grateful for the power of the ones in my life.  I am grateful for the chances to be one for someone else.  I am most of all grateful for the One who makes it all worth while.