This weekend I have a prayer retreat planned at the church. We are using the DVDs that I purchased last year at Come to the Fire for our speakers and using video worship. One member of WCG will be running a prayer room while another runs a prayer walk in another room. A couple of ladies are doing food/snacks and we have greeters and sound booth people.
I have advertised this thing all over town to every church I can mail. I have sent invitations to the Church of God congregations in Ottumwa and Moberly. I have invited all the ladies I work with.
I have 4 registrations.
FOUR!
OK - so maybe most of the ladies who attend will be from our church.
So, today while all are leaving, I stop one lady and visit/say goodbye and stuff. In the exchange I say, "Will I see you on Friday and Saturday?" The response was very noncommittal. I tried another couple of people, but nobody was seeming all that interested!
These are the same ladies who were complaining that WCG was just meeting and collecting money - never 'doing' anything. We had a spa day last month and now a prayer retreat this month, but they aren't showing up. At the spa day we had 15 people, but only 7 were from our church!
I'm DONE trying to please these ladies and get them involved. They aren't going to like anything I do. I'm following my hubby's advice and building passing lanes. I'm going to do things and get excited and work on building up my programs - but I can't drag these ladies with me or wait for them- I'm going to have to find new ones to travel on my journey with me! Sunday morning church goers are going to miss out on a lot of fun in the journey to grow with Christ if they continue to resolve to only come on Sunday mornings! Following Christ and being a part of the body of believers takes more than just a couple of hours out of the weekend. There are plenty of ladies in our church who want to travel with Christ - we'll just have to go on without the others.
And it's not like they are all old! If they were all older, I could see that they are just from another generation, but some are quite young! Sometimes I feel like they serve God from a different tradition that the one I belong to. It's like there is a checklist of do's and don't's that are to be followed and if you get them all done when they are supposed to be done, then you'll get to be a Christian and go to heaven. The holiness movement I am a proud part of is all about relationship - with God and with others. Following where the Holy Spirit leads on a daily basis. In my Bible it says the Jesus came to fulfill the whole law and take my sin to the grave with Him. I am free from the condemnation of the Law of the Old Testament and am free to follow Christ with no limits. I am to be in such a close relationship with God that I can follow His leading daily and be Jesus all over my corner of the world - just wearing a "Jill Suit" while I'm doing it! OK - enough of that - that's my next blog!
I feel sorry for these ladies who choose to exclude themselves from the fellowship of women. I wish I could just rope them and bring them along for just ONE activity so that they could see for themselves what others are experiencing, but I'm not sure it will ever happen.
So on with the building of the passing lanes.
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Unsettled
Unsettled is how I am feeling right now. Very unsettled. Nervous? Anxious? Wierdly eager, too.
Once again, I have tried going to the doctor for my pain. Daily pain that wears me out. This time, living in Kirksville, the Osteopathic center of the world, I went to a DO in hopes that an underlying cause would be found rather than being blown off again. It's been 7 years now since the pain began. I thought maybe I could be 'out' all over and that would be causing the pain. The headaches were getting worse, so I was hoping that was the cause...
I was wrong - very wrong. One of the first things that was commented upon was the fact that he was surprised at how in line I was for being in so much regular pain. The verdict? Possible Lupus. At one point he said a 50/50 chance. That's pretty high before the tests have been done!
My red face - not rosaecea like I've always thought. It's the facial rash that comes with Lupus. I know, I know... I haven't gotten the results back yet, but I've spent a week online doing research and I fear I'm going to get a positive result back. Of course, they are running a full series of tests - but there is not one test you can have to get a yes or no. It's a positive of 4 out of 11 that gets you there. I have the rash and the arthritis - that's two. I have had protein in my urine tests several times in the past (but nobody followed up!!!) which would be 3, then the others are blood tests that I have to wait for. But so far it's looking that direction.
To give some more teeth to the idea, I've been looking into how diet affects Lupus and have found that I have already eliminated some of the triggers on my own just from my own observations - like MSG. I've found more and I'll spend this week putting them into practice.
Which brings me to the next idea - what to do for my blood tests next Monday. Do i spend this week putting myself into remission (hopefully?) only to not get the right results next Monday, or do I keep myself in a flareup so that I get accurate results? I think I've decided to eat well and try to feel better, then eat poorly next weekend to flare up so that the needed 'items' are in my blood to be tested. This assumes, of course, that diet makes that much of an effect. The big deal is the red rash on my face and how it affects it - no redness in the folded part of the face around the nose and down to the lips.
I'm a little scared. This is a lifelong thing. This isn't something that can be cured, and it can lead to some really serious side effects. This will affect my whole life. I may not be able to work sometime in the near future. It definitely puts me on the slow down list. Sleep and lower stress are major necessities!
OK - speaking of sleep... I need to get to bed!
I'll keep my feelings updated here as a place to vent.
Jill
Once again, I have tried going to the doctor for my pain. Daily pain that wears me out. This time, living in Kirksville, the Osteopathic center of the world, I went to a DO in hopes that an underlying cause would be found rather than being blown off again. It's been 7 years now since the pain began. I thought maybe I could be 'out' all over and that would be causing the pain. The headaches were getting worse, so I was hoping that was the cause...
I was wrong - very wrong. One of the first things that was commented upon was the fact that he was surprised at how in line I was for being in so much regular pain. The verdict? Possible Lupus. At one point he said a 50/50 chance. That's pretty high before the tests have been done!
My red face - not rosaecea like I've always thought. It's the facial rash that comes with Lupus. I know, I know... I haven't gotten the results back yet, but I've spent a week online doing research and I fear I'm going to get a positive result back. Of course, they are running a full series of tests - but there is not one test you can have to get a yes or no. It's a positive of 4 out of 11 that gets you there. I have the rash and the arthritis - that's two. I have had protein in my urine tests several times in the past (but nobody followed up!!!) which would be 3, then the others are blood tests that I have to wait for. But so far it's looking that direction.
To give some more teeth to the idea, I've been looking into how diet affects Lupus and have found that I have already eliminated some of the triggers on my own just from my own observations - like MSG. I've found more and I'll spend this week putting them into practice.
Which brings me to the next idea - what to do for my blood tests next Monday. Do i spend this week putting myself into remission (hopefully?) only to not get the right results next Monday, or do I keep myself in a flareup so that I get accurate results? I think I've decided to eat well and try to feel better, then eat poorly next weekend to flare up so that the needed 'items' are in my blood to be tested. This assumes, of course, that diet makes that much of an effect. The big deal is the red rash on my face and how it affects it - no redness in the folded part of the face around the nose and down to the lips.
I'm a little scared. This is a lifelong thing. This isn't something that can be cured, and it can lead to some really serious side effects. This will affect my whole life. I may not be able to work sometime in the near future. It definitely puts me on the slow down list. Sleep and lower stress are major necessities!
OK - speaking of sleep... I need to get to bed!
I'll keep my feelings updated here as a place to vent.
Jill
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Time to Clean House
Matthew 12:43-45
"When a defiling evil spirit is expelled from someone, it drifts along through the desert looking for an oasis, some unsuspecting soul it can bedevil. When it doesn't find anyone, it says, 'I'll go back to my old haunt.' On return it finds the person spotlessly clean, but vacant. It then runs out and rounds up seven other spirits more evil than itself and they all move in, whooping it up. That person ends up far worse off than if he'd never gotten cleaned up in the first place. "That's what this generation is like: You may think you have cleaned out the junk from your lives and gotten ready for God, but you weren't hospitable to my kingdom message, and now all the devils are moving back in."
Wow. Talk about scary!
Following Christ is more than just getting rid of your demons. You have to replace them with God. If you are getting rid of something, you have to put something it it's place - just like when you are trying to diet or stop smoking or something like that.
Showing up at the alter at church - or praying to have God take care of the hurts inside of you are not the end of the answer.
You have to make Jesus the Lord of your life. You have to give over control to Him. You have to be will to have the Holy Spirit enter you and start cleaning out all the rooms of your heart - getting rid of the junk and replacing it with new, pure goodness.
If not, you will rid yourself of one thing, only to have it replaces by something much worse!
This IS what happens. It's straight from the mouth of Jesus. I shudder to think of how many people go to someone to have an evil spirit 'dealt with', only to find themselves in even deeper trouble because they didn't refill themselves when it was done.
We don't have to be empty when that spirit returns. There can be no evil in the presence of the Holy Spirit, so when we fill ourselves with God's Holy Spirit, the evil spirits will find no entry into us again.
I pray that you will fill yourself up today!
"When a defiling evil spirit is expelled from someone, it drifts along through the desert looking for an oasis, some unsuspecting soul it can bedevil. When it doesn't find anyone, it says, 'I'll go back to my old haunt.' On return it finds the person spotlessly clean, but vacant. It then runs out and rounds up seven other spirits more evil than itself and they all move in, whooping it up. That person ends up far worse off than if he'd never gotten cleaned up in the first place. "That's what this generation is like: You may think you have cleaned out the junk from your lives and gotten ready for God, but you weren't hospitable to my kingdom message, and now all the devils are moving back in."
Wow. Talk about scary!
Following Christ is more than just getting rid of your demons. You have to replace them with God. If you are getting rid of something, you have to put something it it's place - just like when you are trying to diet or stop smoking or something like that.
Showing up at the alter at church - or praying to have God take care of the hurts inside of you are not the end of the answer.
You have to make Jesus the Lord of your life. You have to give over control to Him. You have to be will to have the Holy Spirit enter you and start cleaning out all the rooms of your heart - getting rid of the junk and replacing it with new, pure goodness.
If not, you will rid yourself of one thing, only to have it replaces by something much worse!
This IS what happens. It's straight from the mouth of Jesus. I shudder to think of how many people go to someone to have an evil spirit 'dealt with', only to find themselves in even deeper trouble because they didn't refill themselves when it was done.
We don't have to be empty when that spirit returns. There can be no evil in the presence of the Holy Spirit, so when we fill ourselves with God's Holy Spirit, the evil spirits will find no entry into us again.
I pray that you will fill yourself up today!
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Judgment Day
Matthew 11:20-24
Next Jesus let fly on the cities where he had worked the hardest but whose people had responded the least, shrugging their shoulders and going their own way. "Doom to you, Chorazin! Doom, Bethsaida! If Tyre and Sidon had seen half of the powerful miracles you have seen, they would have been on their knees in a minute. At Judgment Day they'll get off easy compared to you. And Capernaum! With all your peacock strutting, you are going to end up in the abyss. If the people of Sodom had had your chances, the city would still be around. At Judgment Day they'll get off easy compared to you."
Jesus berated those who had many chances and still refused to listen.
JUDGMENT DAY - that's a scary thought!
Jesus is with me always - in all I say and do. What will He say about my choices when I stand before Him?
My actions
My words
My thoughts - yes, even my thoughts!
Jesus is with me always - in all I say and do. If I choose to do so, I can allow Him to lead me in all things - My actions - My words - My thoughts, yes, even my thoughts. But do I do that? Do I allow Christ to 'dwell in me richly'? Do I allow Jesus complete and total access to all that is inside me, inside my heart?
Not all the time.
In our hearts we have areas, or 'rooms' that we keep closed.
We will give our hearts to Jesus, sometimes at a very young age, but giving ALL to Jesus is another thing. For me it's been a long long time since I've been 'saved'. but I know I still have rooms that I have yet to give to Jesus. I'm not sure what or where they are right now, but Jesus will let me know when it's time. I've thought I had given them all over to him before, but He let me know when He wanted to clean out a particular 'room' (problem, issue, held-on-to-hurt or resentment). I'm sure He will find others when it is time.
Living in Christ is not a quick thing or an easy thing. It is an ever-changing, ever-growing process of quiet time with God and earthly work for His Glory. I have yet to meet anyone who has 'arrived' yet who still exists here on Earth. God works on us, molding and plying (painful things, remember!!!) until the very end.
Are you being molded and plied? Are you presenting yourself to God and making yourself available for it? Are you open to new insights in His Word?
Christianity is not a stagnant position.
If you aren't growing, you're dead.
Wake up and grow!
Next Jesus let fly on the cities where he had worked the hardest but whose people had responded the least, shrugging their shoulders and going their own way. "Doom to you, Chorazin! Doom, Bethsaida! If Tyre and Sidon had seen half of the powerful miracles you have seen, they would have been on their knees in a minute. At Judgment Day they'll get off easy compared to you. And Capernaum! With all your peacock strutting, you are going to end up in the abyss. If the people of Sodom had had your chances, the city would still be around. At Judgment Day they'll get off easy compared to you."
Jesus berated those who had many chances and still refused to listen.
JUDGMENT DAY - that's a scary thought!
Jesus is with me always - in all I say and do. What will He say about my choices when I stand before Him?
My actions
My words
My thoughts - yes, even my thoughts!
Jesus is with me always - in all I say and do. If I choose to do so, I can allow Him to lead me in all things - My actions - My words - My thoughts, yes, even my thoughts. But do I do that? Do I allow Christ to 'dwell in me richly'? Do I allow Jesus complete and total access to all that is inside me, inside my heart?
Not all the time.
In our hearts we have areas, or 'rooms' that we keep closed.
We will give our hearts to Jesus, sometimes at a very young age, but giving ALL to Jesus is another thing. For me it's been a long long time since I've been 'saved'. but I know I still have rooms that I have yet to give to Jesus. I'm not sure what or where they are right now, but Jesus will let me know when it's time. I've thought I had given them all over to him before, but He let me know when He wanted to clean out a particular 'room' (problem, issue, held-on-to-hurt or resentment). I'm sure He will find others when it is time.
Living in Christ is not a quick thing or an easy thing. It is an ever-changing, ever-growing process of quiet time with God and earthly work for His Glory. I have yet to meet anyone who has 'arrived' yet who still exists here on Earth. God works on us, molding and plying (painful things, remember!!!) until the very end.
Are you being molded and plied? Are you presenting yourself to God and making yourself available for it? Are you open to new insights in His Word?
Christianity is not a stagnant position.
If you aren't growing, you're dead.
Wake up and grow!
Sunday, April 6, 2008
Treading Water
Life can get rough sometimes. These times make me feel like I'm just trying to keep my head above water. I'm up to my neck in 'life' and struggling to find my next move all the time. All my time and energy and thought goes into this particular life situation and I lose track of the rest of life around me.
For ten years I was just trying to keep my head above water. I woke up one day and found that I had lost ten years of my life just trying to survive my life!
What would have happened if I had been able to give it all over to God to being with? How much effort and energy would I have been able to save knowing that God was in control?
Think about it. We live our lives. Life sometimes gets us down. Picture a swimming pool. We are in the pool living life. Sometimes we are able to tread slowly and keep pace with life. Sometimes we have to work hard to keep above the water line. There are even times when we are sitting on the sidelines or floating on a raft.
God lives outside the pool area - he can see from above. He can see what is coming upon us as we swim our way through life. He sees what is coming up the road, around the corner, and slithering through the grass. Knowing this, He will help us prepare for the situations if we will only give the control to Him!
Relax! Remember your swimming lessons from childhood! Lay back and float. Stop spending so much time and energy on trying to keep your head above water! You don't have to do all that work. God is in control. If you will just lay back and place it all in His hands and float a while, you will soon find yourself floating on a raft rather that swimming to breathe!
God wants to help you - but He will never push Himself into your life. You have to lay back and allow Him to do His work in you.
Relax and float a while.
Life will be blessed by God if you do!
For ten years I was just trying to keep my head above water. I woke up one day and found that I had lost ten years of my life just trying to survive my life!
What would have happened if I had been able to give it all over to God to being with? How much effort and energy would I have been able to save knowing that God was in control?
Think about it. We live our lives. Life sometimes gets us down. Picture a swimming pool. We are in the pool living life. Sometimes we are able to tread slowly and keep pace with life. Sometimes we have to work hard to keep above the water line. There are even times when we are sitting on the sidelines or floating on a raft.
God lives outside the pool area - he can see from above. He can see what is coming upon us as we swim our way through life. He sees what is coming up the road, around the corner, and slithering through the grass. Knowing this, He will help us prepare for the situations if we will only give the control to Him!
Relax! Remember your swimming lessons from childhood! Lay back and float. Stop spending so much time and energy on trying to keep your head above water! You don't have to do all that work. God is in control. If you will just lay back and place it all in His hands and float a while, you will soon find yourself floating on a raft rather that swimming to breathe!
God wants to help you - but He will never push Himself into your life. You have to lay back and allow Him to do His work in you.
Relax and float a while.
Life will be blessed by God if you do!
Thursday, April 3, 2008
Unveiled
2 Corinthians 3:18 says,"And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit."
In the beginning of that quote is the idea that our faces are unveiled.
Are they, really?
This scripture is referring back to Exodus when Moses was spending a LOT of time up on the mountain with God. 40 days and nights without food or water he spent up there! Wow!
His face was glowing when he returned. GLOWING!!! He was so completely filled with God's goodness and happy from His presence that he was glowing. He was glowing so much that he scared the Israelites and had to cover his face (veil).
How often do we truly unveil ourselves to those around us?
When we are at work, we are wearing the 'work veil'.
When we are at home, we are wearing the 'wife', 'mother', and/or 'daughter' veil.
When we are at a sporting event, or a school event, we wear the appropriate veil.
When we encounter someone in authority we quickly make sure we have on the correct veil for that situation.
Why the veils?
Are we truly glowing underneath the veils? If we are, then why do we hide it? Why are we afraid to show God's glory to those around us? Why do we hide His presence from those we encounter every day?
Or is that another veil we wear - the veil of Christianity.
Do we put on the veil that tells everyone we are a Christian, only to hide the fact that there is no glow underneath?
Are you spending time daily with God? Do you have the glow of His presence and His goodness shining on your face like Moses?
Ask God to give you His glow and then keep it unveiled for the world to see! What a change you will see for yourself!!!
In the beginning of that quote is the idea that our faces are unveiled.
Are they, really?
This scripture is referring back to Exodus when Moses was spending a LOT of time up on the mountain with God. 40 days and nights without food or water he spent up there! Wow!
His face was glowing when he returned. GLOWING!!! He was so completely filled with God's goodness and happy from His presence that he was glowing. He was glowing so much that he scared the Israelites and had to cover his face (veil).
How often do we truly unveil ourselves to those around us?
When we are at work, we are wearing the 'work veil'.
When we are at home, we are wearing the 'wife', 'mother', and/or 'daughter' veil.
When we are at a sporting event, or a school event, we wear the appropriate veil.
When we encounter someone in authority we quickly make sure we have on the correct veil for that situation.
Why the veils?
Are we truly glowing underneath the veils? If we are, then why do we hide it? Why are we afraid to show God's glory to those around us? Why do we hide His presence from those we encounter every day?
Or is that another veil we wear - the veil of Christianity.
Do we put on the veil that tells everyone we are a Christian, only to hide the fact that there is no glow underneath?
Are you spending time daily with God? Do you have the glow of His presence and His goodness shining on your face like Moses?
Ask God to give you His glow and then keep it unveiled for the world to see! What a change you will see for yourself!!!
Saturday, March 8, 2008
A Difference
I am in the process of preparing for my Small Group lesson for tomorrow morning. It is on self-control - the last of the fruit of the Spirit. I wrote the book, but I still fill out the Scripture verses and underline and mark my book just as I would any other book I was using. It's been a while since I wrote it, and God speaks to me through it just as if I hadn't written it myself.
God spoke to me today.
This is what I had written:
"If you learn only one thing, I pray it is this: Being a Christian is a life of action. It means putting ourselves out where we will be vulnerable to attack, but we choose to do so and lean on God for the power to continue.
It means taking our love of God seriously and following His commands to take care of those around us.
For many of us, this means a total life change. It means hard work re-training the way we view our lives and how we interact with our world."
I underlined in my book what I bold and italicized above. That is an important point. How often do we allow ourselves to be put in a situation where we are vulnerable in order to serve God? I had to think, then the Holy Spirit spoke to me and I just had to share.
When we first arrived in Kirksville just 6 or 7 months ago, our son, Jacob, became fast friends with a boy named Killian. Making new friends in a new school is tough, and Jacob already has a tough time in this area, so we fostered this new relationship. We had Killian over to spend the night one Friday night. Wow! What a night! This kid never stopped! He talked and moved all over the house - even was playing the drums after he was supposed to be asleep late late late in the night. He wasn't trying to be disobedient! He really and truly couldn't help himself.
A couple of weeks later, we invited Killian over on a Saturday night so that we could bring him to church. In the process, we got his sister also. Another full house and a busy one, but the kids loved the church family and have returned regularly throughout the winter!
As we got to know this family, we learned that Mom is a single mother who was struggling to even be on her feet, let alone get back up on them. We found ourselves watching kids up to bedtimes on weeknights or even keeping them overnight a few times. Of course, all the while, wondering just how 'legitimate' each situation really was. These times haven't come up lately, and I've always felt that even though the time was rough, it was the right thing to do. We continued to have groups of kids over to the house and usually try to plan it for Saturday nights with the ulterior motive of getting them to church. It makes for very busy nights, but productive ones!
All this story comes to a head today - the mom, Salina, talked with me today about how well things have started going - just recently and in a way that is just blowing her away. She no longer has to pay her ex-husband child support for kids she is taking care of. The state will be going after him for a situation that will make her the legal guardian again. With this, she has been able to work and keep all of the money she earns, making it possible for her to move her kids to a house with a yard in a neighborhood and out of the unsafe trailer in an industrial part of town with lots of drugs and guns around.
As she was telling me all about how well things are going now and how overwhelmed whe is about it all, she makes the point that she in intent on keeping in touch with me and with Carolyn, who were the only people in Kirksville who ever did anything nice for her and helped her. She recognized and names several times when she needed a pick-me-up and found it in the First Church of God family. No, she has never attended a worship service on Sunday morning, but she saw Jesus. She saw Him through us.
How many of us are going the extra mile for those within our reach? It's not an easy task. I didn't always have the time or the energy to listen to long stories on the phone. I wasn't always in the mood to enjoy staying up late to oversee groups of children in our home on a Saturday night. There have been clothing drives and food gifts. How often do we blow off opportunities to help? How often do we drive past the dumped cargo that we could help pick up and reload? How often do we walk past someone who will work for food?
Does is really matter whether or not they are legitimate? I think that can be a rationalization to play it safe - to keep from putting ourselves in a vulnerable position. I believe God wants us to be smart, but to also be vulnerable - to put ourselves out there where we can do the best for others, even if it hurts sometimes. Remember - NO PAIN NO GAIN
God spoke to me today.
This is what I had written:
"If you learn only one thing, I pray it is this: Being a Christian is a life of action. It means putting ourselves out where we will be vulnerable to attack, but we choose to do so and lean on God for the power to continue.
It means taking our love of God seriously and following His commands to take care of those around us.
For many of us, this means a total life change. It means hard work re-training the way we view our lives and how we interact with our world."
I underlined in my book what I bold and italicized above. That is an important point. How often do we allow ourselves to be put in a situation where we are vulnerable in order to serve God? I had to think, then the Holy Spirit spoke to me and I just had to share.
When we first arrived in Kirksville just 6 or 7 months ago, our son, Jacob, became fast friends with a boy named Killian. Making new friends in a new school is tough, and Jacob already has a tough time in this area, so we fostered this new relationship. We had Killian over to spend the night one Friday night. Wow! What a night! This kid never stopped! He talked and moved all over the house - even was playing the drums after he was supposed to be asleep late late late in the night. He wasn't trying to be disobedient! He really and truly couldn't help himself.
A couple of weeks later, we invited Killian over on a Saturday night so that we could bring him to church. In the process, we got his sister also. Another full house and a busy one, but the kids loved the church family and have returned regularly throughout the winter!
As we got to know this family, we learned that Mom is a single mother who was struggling to even be on her feet, let alone get back up on them. We found ourselves watching kids up to bedtimes on weeknights or even keeping them overnight a few times. Of course, all the while, wondering just how 'legitimate' each situation really was. These times haven't come up lately, and I've always felt that even though the time was rough, it was the right thing to do. We continued to have groups of kids over to the house and usually try to plan it for Saturday nights with the ulterior motive of getting them to church. It makes for very busy nights, but productive ones!
All this story comes to a head today - the mom, Salina, talked with me today about how well things have started going - just recently and in a way that is just blowing her away. She no longer has to pay her ex-husband child support for kids she is taking care of. The state will be going after him for a situation that will make her the legal guardian again. With this, she has been able to work and keep all of the money she earns, making it possible for her to move her kids to a house with a yard in a neighborhood and out of the unsafe trailer in an industrial part of town with lots of drugs and guns around.
As she was telling me all about how well things are going now and how overwhelmed whe is about it all, she makes the point that she in intent on keeping in touch with me and with Carolyn, who were the only people in Kirksville who ever did anything nice for her and helped her. She recognized and names several times when she needed a pick-me-up and found it in the First Church of God family. No, she has never attended a worship service on Sunday morning, but she saw Jesus. She saw Him through us.
How many of us are going the extra mile for those within our reach? It's not an easy task. I didn't always have the time or the energy to listen to long stories on the phone. I wasn't always in the mood to enjoy staying up late to oversee groups of children in our home on a Saturday night. There have been clothing drives and food gifts. How often do we blow off opportunities to help? How often do we drive past the dumped cargo that we could help pick up and reload? How often do we walk past someone who will work for food?
Does is really matter whether or not they are legitimate? I think that can be a rationalization to play it safe - to keep from putting ourselves in a vulnerable position. I believe God wants us to be smart, but to also be vulnerable - to put ourselves out there where we can do the best for others, even if it hurts sometimes. Remember - NO PAIN NO GAIN
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