Day 71 blog

This video is a reference: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DQm9IsaD2rv/?igsh=dzM2ZTI3NHNpNnIz

Today’s blog is inspired by a video I’m sharing at the beginning, and it’s something that’s been sitting heavy on my heart.

There was a comparison made that really stuck with me. If someone lost a penny, most of us wouldn’t think twice about it. It’s small. It’s replaceable. But if someone lost a diamond ring, everything would stop. We would search everywhere. We would retrace steps. We would understand instantly that what was lost mattered.

And it made me think about how often we treat people like pennies instead of something far more valuable than any diamond.

In our world today, it’s easy to overlook people. To label them by their mistakes. To judge them by their circumstances. We see someone struggling and assume their story. We walk past people who are hurting because it’s uncomfortable to stop and really see them. Somewhere along the way, we forget that every person carries value that cannot be measured.

What continues to stand out to me is how Jesus moved through the world. Scripture reminds us over and over again that Jesus saw people. Not their past. Not their failures. Not their reputation. He saw their worth. He stopped. He listened. He showed compassion when society chose judgment. That example matters now more than ever.

That mindset is something I try to carry into my life and my work. It’s one of the reasons my employees and I make it a priority to do community outreach every single month in both California and Texas. It’s not about checking a box or posting a photo. It’s about showing up. Feeding people. Listening to them. Letting them know they matter.

When you truly see people as valuable, your actions change. You stop rushing past them. You stop reducing them to a moment, a mistake, or a label. You meet them with dignity. With kindness. With humanity.

I believe faith isn’t just something we talk about. It’s something we live out. It’s choosing to stop when it would be easier to keep going. It’s choosing compassion when judgment would be simpler. It’s choosing to see people the way Jesus does, even when it requires more from us.

People are not pennies. They are not disposable. They are not defined by their worst day. Every person we encounter carries a story, a purpose, and a value that far outweighs anything material.

Today is a reminder for me to slow down. To be intentional. To keep seeing people, truly seeing them.

Because when we recognize someone’s value, we change how we treat them.

And that’s where real impact begins.

Signed, Paulina.