My New Year's Resolution is totally to get the blog back up and running! I miss being to look back over what we've been up to! For now, a little something to tide me and you over.
Oh my gracious, if I've heard this once then I've heard it a thousand times, "I don't like serving at church on Sunday's because I miss worship." Well let me tell you about my weekend . . .
Saturday was our
church's first ever, but definetly not last, Servolution. A revolution of service . . . you know because
"That is what the Son of Man has done: He came to serve, not be served." The whole church gathered up this past Saturday to serve our community. Groups did home repairs, groups passed out gifts and visited the apartments across the road, groups went to the retirement apartments and cleaned apartments, groups did yardwork, groups visited nursing homes, and so on.
Ryan was doing electrical repairs and I had the kids with me so we selected going to two nursing homes in Mansfield to sing Christmas carols and pass out goodies to the residents. Let me just say, I've been in church all of my life and church's love to go to nursing homes and sing, so this is not my first nursing home rodeo. My normal nursing home behavior is sing and then pretend to be busy with something else so that I don't have to actually visit with anyone. I spend more time visiting with the people I came with then the people I went to minister to and encourage.
My heart belongs with dirty and forgotten children not old people. However, before we left, as part of our 25 days of Christmas, I had Mason read that day's activity and it was "Love Jesus and celebrate His birth by serving others." And I had referenced James 1:27 . . . loosely paraphased - "good religion is to look after orphans and widows." I discussed with him what a widow was and that not everyone there would be a widow but the underlying message was to look after those forgotten.
On the drive there, we continued to discuss what a nursing home was and the types of people we would encounter and why they were there and slowly it began to hit me that these people are just like orphans in a way - at the places we went, some residents but not all, were essentially abandoned there . . . they were helpless, they were lonely, they needed a friend, they needed a little Jesus with skin - i.e. personal touch from a believer. I began to pray for God to open my eyes and heart to truly visit and serve these people, while simultaneously begging him not to burden with a passion for them because I already don't know what to do with my passion for the kiddos I've never met but so dearly love! (well that's a lie . . . I know exactly what I want to do but apparently it's not what God wants, darn it!).
So nothing earth shaking happened but it was truly a blessing to step out of my comfort zone and to hold hands with people and to ask for and use their first name and converse with people at the nursings homes! It was a blessing to be able to do this with my children too! I was so thankful that I went and so blessed to meet Ms. Stella and Ms. Sallie and the many others that I was able to look into their eyes and hold their sweet hands and and unwrap baking cups off of cupcakes - sweet blessings indeed.
After it was over we had a princess over to play!
The next morning was crazy - Aaron was sick and on my way to church I realized my tire was going flat. It was one of those mornings where you really just want to sit in church and sing and go home, but I was scheduled to SERVE in the nursery that day. I spent my morning with some lovely little preschoolers and had the best time!! Oh I got to snuggle a sweet little girl for about 20 minutes while she was missing her mama. The kids were learning about Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and their memory verse was from Joshua 1:9 - " Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” I got to whisper some sweet prayers in her sleepy ear about that God has not left her and that her mama will come back for her. Precious thing woke up and was ready to play! With my hands free, I soon became a horse and was instructed "giddy-up!" Joyful morning!
Straight from nursery, I ran to the kitchen to help serve a meal to guests and those interested in learning more about our church and what we do. I poured tea, passed our napkins, sliced cake, picked up dirty plates, etc. Nothing glorious but oh so fun!
When I left
Fellowship Community Church, I felt so refreshed and uplifted and it dawned on me, that my service was worship! It was so rewarding and easy . . . His burden is easy and his yoke is light. It wasn't required of me, but serving others in so many ways this weekend was better than any service I could sat through.
Serving others, it's sort of biblical, you should give it a try!
And afterward, I got to enjoy the view and bounty of God's creation . . .
