Humble yourself in the sight of the LORD and He shall lift you up

Many years ago as I was grocery shopping in my wheelchair, a woman approached me. "Hello. My name is Susan. How are you?" I cordially answered her question. The woman continued to talk to me for a few minutes. She told me how proud she was that I was able to go grocery shopping all by myself. What a big accomplishment it was! "Your parents must be so proud of you!" She made many condescending remarks and talked to me as though I was a three year old. I knew instantly this woman thought because I was using a wheelchair, I must have diminished mental abilities. (This happens frequently. Why people equate using a wheelchair with having mental impairments has always remained a mystery to me.) In my zeal to show this woman my intelligence, I tried using large words and tried sounding as intelligent as possible. However, it did not matter what I said, the woman continued to talk to me like a three year old. Every time I went grocery shopping, it seemed I almost always saw Susan at the store. I was always polite and tried not to be annoyed by her condescending remarks.

One day, I met my friend's mom, Kathy, at the store. I was talking to her when Susan suddenly appeared. Susan exclaimed, "Oh, Kathy, you know this precious girl too!? Isn't it amazing she can come to the store all by herself? She can get her groceries and then go through the check-out lane all by herself. What an accomplishment! I am sure her parents are so proud of her!" Upon hearing Susan's words, Kathy looked at me in bewilderment. The words, "Is this woman serious!?" seemed to flash across Kathy's face. Thankfully, Kathy, being quick-witted, knew immediately how to set this woman straight.

Kathy: "Oh, yes Susan, this young lady is quite talented. Did you know she went school with my son?"

Susan turning to me: "Oh, how wonderful! You were able to go to school!"

Kathy: "Yes, she tutored my son and graduated high school as valedictorian."

Susan turning to me: "Oh how wonderful you were able to attend high school and were able to graduate too. That must have been quite an accomplishment...what!?" (As if waking from a distant dream, Kathy's words seem to ring in Susan's ears. Susan turns quickly towards Kathy.) "Did you say she tutored your son and graduated as valedictorian!?"

Kathy: "Yes, Susan, she is quite a talented young lady."

Susan: "So that means she is smart?" The color drained from Susan's face as she realized she had completely misjudged my mental abilities. Immediately, Susan stopped talking to me like a three year old and started talking to me like an adult.

I remained friends with Susan for a couple years until our lives drifted apart. During the time when Susan treated me like a three year old, I repeatedly wanted to yell and scream at Susan that I was not mentally challenged. But, I refrained from acting like a child. Instead, I clung to God's Word: "Humble yourself in the sight of the LORD, and He shall lift you up" (James 4:10). True to His Word, on that day so long ago, He did lift me up. Ever since this experience, I never try to correct people's misconceived ideas about me. Instead, I try to stay calm, remain humble and let God deal with the people.