I have to tell ya that I am just blown away by the kindess of the folks in my life - the folks in Carols life - Neither of us have family in the area but we have an extended family that is just unreal. Yesterday I spoke with one of our friends who was out of town over the weekend and her daughter just loves Kyle - they are in the same class together and she called to check on us, to check on Walt and wanted an update on everything - she has made arrangements for meals starting this Saturday till whenever next week. The PTA who serves with Carol at school has provided meals and smiles all this week, along with the comfort of knowing we are not alone - the hugs that tells us that we will make it through because people care. Our Rock Group families are providing meals, offers to watch Kyle, to come to the house and clean, to come over and get Carol out of the house for an hour or so - plus hugs, prayers, tears, people that are willing to stand right along side of us. Our church families are doing their part by seeing us on Sundays, talking with us, praying with us, calling and emailing - along with everything else I just listed above - I mean folks - I am blown away by the love and compassion that God has placed in our lives through our extended family.
Carol was telling Walt yesterday about all that is going on -and he said - you guys have some awesome friends to be doing all this for you and for him! I shared with him that is what the church is supposed to do - to bring community to the community through the power and Word of God. Our struggles and issues are not just our own because we have an extended family who loves and cares about us. It is so humbling - and we are so thankful that God has placed all this together.
I know without a doubt that if we were not in church -not walking with Jesus - not serving and leading at church - staying self centered and focused only on ourselves - coming to church on Sunday and leaving till next week (unchanged for the most part - absorbing Gods light instead of reflecting it) we would not be receiving the blessings that are all around us today!!!
This opens me up to share with you something this morning on a different subject - something that I am very passionate about. Serving - serving others and more importantly - serving in your church and serving God.
This past week we plugged in 3 new folks into our setup ministry at church. It has been awhile since that has happened. I can tell they were a little nervous, not sure of what they were getting into but as time went on - they found their groove and they met all kinds of new people that otherwise they would have never met by just coming to church and leaving. They have walked through the doors of serving and experiencing more of Gods blessings by serving Him - giving others the chance to experience God and life change because of their faith and wanting to be involved. I too, was that person who had excuses for not serving. I too put life and what I wanted to do ahead of serving and that obligation. But now - I see the benefit and am enjoying my time serving - I take ownership of being part of something so much bigger than myself.
See it here when we are serving that God uses us, He teaches us and He focuses us on bigger things. Serving puts you in line with others who also struggle with life and who are looking for something more - something bigger and something with meaning and purpose. I want to plug in every person at our church to serve in some capacity. I know not everyone can sing in the band - but God has given us each talents and gifts that some of us don't even know we have! Not everyone can stand in front of a crowd and lead - but God needs folks to set up chairs - to work in the band behind the scenes - to work on the sound productions teams - to work with our kids in K-5 and Middle/High school ministries. Some folks have amazing personalities and smiles that are magnets to others - we need you to greet folks and use your talents to welcome folks and make them feel easy. So many folks feel uneasy coming to a new church - but why? They dont feel that way going to a store in the mall that they have never stepped foot in.
God wants to use you - He wants you to be grounded in Him before those times in life that You need Him! We can't come to God during those times when things are falling apart - we need Him before then! So during those hard times, it will be easier and you will learn something that God has to teach you.
Friends, I am encouraged this morning because of what God is doing all around us. He is even using Walt today because Carol's brother and his daughter are coming down. We are going to hook Kaity up to one of "my kids" on Saturday and on Sunday they are going to the Middle/High school Ministry together - Kaity has not spent much time in church or getting to know God at all - I just can't wait to see what God does with all that this weekend.
Come out of your comfort zones - get in the game and get involved - Jesus did not ask to come aboard the fishing boats when his disciples were fishing - He walked out on the water and got in -
Jesus said "Come follow me" and they did.
Lonnie~
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