[MUSIC PLAYING]

Why am I here?

Is it because of something I signed up for months ago that now I can't get out of?

And who wants to be another drop in the bucket, completely lost at sea?

Mile after mile of a journey that doesn't seem to lead anywhere. Always tired, always thirsty. Unsure how others fake their way through life.

Why do I struggle to find a place where I can just be myself, where I don't have to be surrounded by people I can't stand? Phonies, frauds.

Is it all just a game?

Are we all just pretenders? One big mess?

And why is the wood so heavy?

Why am I here?

The funny thing about purpose is that you never know when you're going to find yours. I've wondered if some people even have one--if I have one. When she stood up, I thought we were about to get some makeup tips. But the first thing out of her mouth was that she didn't want to be there. Her dad had made her come.

She told us that her mom died when she was six. So her dad had raised her, sometimes holding down two jobs just so he could support her and her sisters. She shuffled back and forth from one relative's house to the other, sometimes never sure week to week where she'd be staying. She said she didn't even like coming to church anymore because she didn't think anyone actually liked her for who she really was. That's why she tried so hard to fit in, why she was so loud and obnoxious. Most of all, she said that she just really missed her mom.

I missed my mom, too. But at least she was still alive.

She told me she'd never had a really good friend, but when I thought about it, I realized I hadn't either. Maybe I just never really committed to helping anyone but myself. I guess I'd spent so much time comparing and criticizing that I hadn't actually learned how to help anyone. But there she was--no mother, a difficult life. And she was the one helping me, showing me what kindness looked like.

Why am I here?

Why is anyone here? Something tells me that I'm here for her and she's here for me. And we're here for everyone on His errand, on His time.

That must be what I signed up for. [MUSIC PLAYING]