One Word ~ SERVE

It's New Year's Day & a sweet one it has been. We navigated our way through the holidays a little differently this year, & today was the last of the festivities. Breakfast was yummy this morning & the decision to stay in pajamas all day was a winner! We began the end of the day back at the table with a traditional New Year's meal of greens & beans. Now the boys are headed to dreamland, the girl is running wild & hard from sleepytown, & the parents will shortly try to steal a while alone to watch October Baby. Tomorrow is back to work for Daddy & back to school for Mrs. Mom's holiday-hungover class of two. We are ridiculously blessed. It doesn't get much better than this.

Yet...

How did I behave today when one of my crock pots took extra effort to remove from my extremely inconveniently-designed cabinets? What was my reaction to an overflow of pots & pans that made it especially difficult to access my slow cookers?

Unfortunately,my attitude got a bit out of whack & I might have had a little showdown with my skillets. It was just me, the 1.5 year old, & the cast iron, but it was still ugly. Oh yeah, and the Holy Spirit was there, too.

Thankfully, He was there.
Watching. Waiting. Listening.

Then pouncing.

In the midst of mouth-muttering, eye-rolling, & cookware-cramming He abruptly intervened with a sharp little reminder.

Poverty.

While I grumble about too many pans, a child dies from starvation.
While I rant about an imperfect cabinet layout, a family digs through trash to survive.
While I complain & gripe in my warm home, someone is trying to find shelter from the rain.

There are real people living in real poverty.
There are real people living without a home.
There are real children living without families.

These are not just distant, made-up stories. These are the realities that some people face every minute of every day.

But...

Jesus came for me & He came for these.
Jesus died for me & He died for these.
Jesus loves me & He loves these.

JESUS CREATED ME & HE CREATED THESE
AND HE CREATED US FOR ONE ANOTHER!!

Jesus sees their pain. He hears their cries. He knows their needs.

But how will He reach out & meet those needs?
Is He a heavenly magician that will just abracadabra their troubles away?

No, He is the Almighty God & Everlasting Father who will use His hands & His feet to come alongside these that He dearly loves to lighten their load, to rescue them.

Hands? Feet?

Yes, He will use my pan-flinging hands & my tantrum-stomping feet as His hands & feet to feed the hungry, to shelter the homeless, to love the hurting.

IF I am willing to be used.

I'm sorry, Lord, for my far too many moments of ingratitude & forgetfulness. Thank You for the reminding. And thank You for food, home, family. Thank You for the call. So grateful for Your mercy. Grateful for a new day, a new year. My expectations are high for the days ahead.

My one word for 2013? SERVE.
Endlessly. Tirelessly. Fearlessly. Joyfully.
Happy New Year.