one-year mark

It has been a meaningful and difficult journey working with youths-at-risk for the past one year. I had not really believe that I am cut out to be a social worker despite majoring in this subject for my degree. I had tried the internship but found myself getting burnt out. It is one thing to study for it but another thing to consider it as a career. It was a step of faith and weighing the costs before I decided to go for a career path. One that involved a substantial pay cut, simpler lifestyle and lonely path at times. I really wondered to myself, why I do not choose the 'easy and comfortable' path to work for the government,work to be a teacher,policy executive,facilitator or other jobs that guarantee good pay and career prospects. Not saying that these professions do not have challenges of their kind.

Many people do not understand what I am doing, even my in-laws and parents could not make much sense of it. The remarks I have received from people are: "paid volunteer work", "such a tough job, "challenging n "not easy". I could not agree further. I am not convinced still that it is a sustainable career for male social workers with all the future family commitments in mind. Yet at the same time, I cannot help but think, if not now, then when is a good time to pursue yr dreams and passions? When is the time to step out of your comfort zone and try something different and new?

Reminded of this Prime Time With God article by Os Hilman

So Moses took his wife and sons, put them on a donkey and started back to Egypt. And he took the staff of God in his hand (Exod. 4:20).
When Moses was called by God from his forty years in the desert to lead the people out of Egypt, God first changed his paradigm about his shepherd's staff which represented his work life as a shepherd. God told him He was going to perform miracles through his staff (v17).

A shepherd was considered a very lowly profession by the Egyptians. Moses had a time of breaking in the desert which separated him from all that he learned in Egypt. Many times, the way God calls us into His purpose in our work life is through a hardship of some kind.

God will often "break" our staff, or our vocation, in order to reshape and re-commission us. The purpose of the breaking is not to destroy us, but to bring us to a place of willingness to lay down our vocations so that God can use them for His purposes. The breaking prepares our heart for the new calling. God required Moses to lay down his staff in order for him to see it as something that had power. He had not viewed his work life as a shepherd as having any power.

God was instructing Moses to lay down that which represented his life and calling, so that He could transform it and raise it up for His purposes. Once Moses laid his staff down and then took it back up, a significant change took place. It was no longer his shepherd's staff; it was the "staff of God."

God's staff has power. After Moses' staff became God's, it was used as the instrument of deliverance and transformation for the people of God. It delivered people out of the slavery of Egypt through one of the most dramatic miracles of all time -- the parting of the Red Sea (see Ex. 14:16). Moses' staff transformed a people from slavery to freedom and was used to demonstrate his God-given authority.

Looking back, I thank God for the available opportunities to be used by Him to lend a listening ear, do my part to help them with the many issues that they faced at school, home and in the Home itself. Stealing, substance abuse, sexualised issues, smoking, fighting are some of the issues. I realise that there is only so much that help can be rendered to these youths. Many a times, they relapse into the same old issues. To them, not following the rules and be well-behaved is the 'cool' way to go. Their friends' views and group identity count more than anything else, not even their parents come close. The normal school environment can be difficult for them to change for the better as the approach is top-down and conforming in nature.

Not all the cases are successful given their past family background eg. divorced parents and choices that they made, but at the end of the day, I trust and pray that God will guide and direct them in the way that they should go whatever the cirumstances. A minority did succeed, thrive and went on to achieve the impossible.

I thank God for the support I received from colleagues, dear and other like-minded peers. I do fail them at times, being withdrawn to myself but by His grace, strength, I am striving forward till I finish what I need to do in this job, to see my cases being discharged next year.