This past
weekend I had the opportunity to visit one of the places where my family lived.
Sweet Home, Oregon was and still is small town USA. We lived there for three
years and it was there I attended grades 7-9. As I drove through the area memories surged from my sub-conscious. I’ve
been through the area several times since we moved away but this time, having
an opportunity to attend a service at the Assembly of God church my dad
pastored, was different. As I drove by the schools, restaurants, athletic
fields, and grocery stores, it became very clear to me how much my 1100 days
(give or take a few) in Sweet Home shaped my life.
I’ve known for a
long time how significant the early teen years are upon personal development
and my experience this weekend supports this idea. With that in mind, I want to
share one of the specific memories from this weekend. As I mentioned earlier my
dad was the pastor of the Assembly of God church. The church owned a home
adjacent to building, which is where our family lived. The junior high was only
three blocks away, so I walked to and from school. In the seventh grade
I was average height, which meant that there were lots of girls taller than me
and the eighth grade boys were definitely taller. (I think I feel a
country song coming on, “It’s not easy being short in the seventh grade.”) Something happened early in the school year, which continued for the
entire year. One day in September, as I was walking home, an eighth grade boy started following me. I can’t remember his name, so for the sake of
the story I’ll just call him “The Jerk,” because that’s what he was. The Jerk
started talking to me and taunting me. He figured out that my dad was the
pastor of church, because we lived next door, and so he would say things like:
“Hey, preacher boy!” and a lot worse. Simply put, I hated it. I had just enough
of a temper I would normally have reacted, but The Jerk was quite a bit bigger
than me, so I endured the bullying. This happened most days, and as I already
mentioned, continued for the whole school year.
After my
freshman year our family moved from Sweet Home, but as I continued in high
school and grew taller and stronger, I thought about what I do if I lived near
The Jerk. There’d no doubt I harbored some serious revenge fantasies. I
wouldn’t have been intimidated by his bullying and I doubt that I would have
been able to walk away if he started taunting me again.
There is a point
to this story, one I realized this weekend. As long as I can remember I’ve had
a tendency to root for the underdog. When I see someone suffering some type of
injustice and especially someone who is being bullied by another person, I want
to immediately come to their defense. My experience with The Jerk, clear back
in the seventh grade, has a lot to do with this type of reaction. As
weird as it may sound I am thankful the Lord put The Jerk in my life to help me
develop more compassion.
Have you had
painful experiences in your life that have positively shaped you and
contributed to the person you’ve become?
If you’ve experienced bullying, or maybe you’re a student and still
experiencing verbally abusive behavior, I want to say to you, “I’m so sorry.”
Always remember, “Hurt people hurt people.” The Jerk, in your life, is messed
up in their mind. Don’t stoop to their level by reacting and responding to what
they say to you and about you. Jesus can and will make you stronger than your
enemies. I encourage you to read the prayer in Psalm 25, with a specific focus on verse 20: “Guard my life and rescue me; let me not be put to shame, for I take
refuge in you.” My hope for you is that you will see the painful become
positive in your life today!
Note: If you’ve
experienced the verbally abusive behavior of a bully (as a student or even as
an adult) and would like to share your story with me, email me at: markbryanrobinson@gmail.com. It will
be my privilege to pray for you.
No comments:
Post a Comment