A young lady got admission to the university and had to travel to the capital city, a four hour journey from home. Before she left home, she didn’t know where she was going to stay because all her father could afford was her school fees and a few provisions.
A friend promised to accommodate her for a while until she was able to get a place. New in the capital city and with no relatives to depend on, this young lady moved in with her friend who apparently stayed with her boyfriend.
Things were okay between all of them until the guy started making sexual advances at the lady. He made several attempts to have his way with this young lady. But knowing how in love her friend was with the guy, the young lady did not know how to tell her friend what was happening. When all attempts failed, the guy lied to his girlfriend that her friend was flirting with him, and that he was uncomfortable with her staying with them.
One day when she returned from lectures, the young lady was painfully thrown out of the house . Her cries and pleas fell on deaf ears. Not knowing where to go, she went to a nearby uncompleted building, unpacked her bags and fell asleep through her tears.
The uncompleted building became her new home, her sole source of water, coming from an air condition behind a nearby salon. This lady could cry herself to sleep every night and at a point wanted to stop schooling and go back to her parents who were not on the know of all that she was going through.
Everyday on campus, she would sit through conversations where her friends would be talking about life in the hostel. This really wore her out. She would always go for lectures and do all her assignments before coming home because there was no light at her “house”.
When she eventually opened up to a friend about her situation, the friend offered to accommodate her for that semester; and that was how this young lady squatted with one friend or the other all through her 4 years in the university. She was mocked and laughed at by her course mates and even earned the name “most squatter”.
Before her graduation, she offered to intern in one of the international organizations in that country. And through one of her lecturers, she secured that opportunity.
Within a few years through her hard work and dedication, this young lady was elevated and in the long run became a head of department in her workplace.
She was admired so much by everyone because of her passion and zeal towards her work. Through her work she traveled to different countries, representing her company and speaking at international conferences.
She was the guest speaker for her university’s 60th anniversary and whilst she drove past the then uncompleted building which now was a church, memories of her stay there came flashing back. She shed a few tears and all she could utter was, “Thank God I didn’t give up”.
LESSONS:
1. In life, no great feat is achieved without struggles.
2. Struggles are mostly green lights. The presence of struggles in our journeys are sometimes a depiction of progress, that is not when to stop but to push through.
3. Giving up is not an option to the most determined soul.
4. Sometimes in our bid to conceal the truth, lies are perpetrated in it’s stead. Learn the art of presenting the truth properly .
5. There is always a lesson from every hurdle, never resort to short-cuts.
6. God provides for every vision He gives, always trust Him regardless.
7. In your silent moments, look up to God. Surrender everything to him in prayer and trust him to turn things around in your life.
8.There’s always light at the end of the tunnel. Joy comes in the morning. You’re closer to the end than you know .
What lessons have you learnt?