Visiting the Burn Unit

My "littles" this Thanksgiving. 

This was a quiet Thanksgiving for us. Just the four of us, and my mother-in-law and father-in-law. (my oldest son was with his Dad's family)

Still, when I read some of my favorite blogs leading up to the holiday, there were all kinds of tips about how to get along with your relatives. All were well intentioned.  Most were well written. Some were even helpful. 

But as I mulled the content of them over while doing other household things to get ready for the big day, it occurred to me that not once had I seen a real missons-oriented view. 

Consider this, what if you were called into a burn unit to visit the sick. Would you go in there seeking to be ministered to? Or to minister? 

I suspect whatever little annoyances you walked in there with would instantly melt away as you faced the gravity of the situation. And I'm certain your gratitude for your own health and safety would bathe whatever wounds you had, and allow you to do the same for those around you. 

Well, guess what? When we visit our relatives, or friends, or really put ourselves into any situations where we are surrounded by people, it IS like visiting the burn unit - in a spiritual sense. 

People all around us are injured, suffering, and simply not safe.  Spiritually speaking, if you know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you are healthy and safe. 

Now, I know we all sin. And no one, especially not me, is better than anyone else, saved or not. However, we, by grace alone, are saved for eternity if we trust Him. 

And, as a result of that knowledge, our little annoyances should melt away as we face the gravity of the situation. Let our gratitude for our eternal health bathe whatever wounds we have, and allow us to do the same for those around us.

We are to seek to minister, not to be ministered to. To serve, not to be served. To love. 

This would prevent a lot of the "friction" felt at family gatherings during the holidays. 

"When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon, son of John, do you truly love me more than these?"
"Yes, Lord," he said, "you know that I love you."
Jesus said,"Feed my lambs." John 21:15

Reflecting the Light

This morning my alarm went off while it was still dark. Yuck. 

My husband got up and took the dog out, turned on the light in our dining room and started his Bible time. 

I laid in bed thinking about all of the other times I hadn't wanted to get up, and the many ways God had blessed me when I HAD to get up, just to provide for myself and my boy. 

Then my mind started going to all the unpleasant memories from that time. The bad decisions, the moral failures, etc. Yuck.

Just then, I noticed that one of the pictures hanging on my side of the room was perfectly lit. I immediately ruled out the window (dark outside, remember?) and thought, how is that happening?

It didn't take me too long, even in my half asleep state, to realize that the light was coming in from the 2 inches my husband left the door ajar, reflecting off of a mirror on the other side of the room and perfectly lighting the picture. Amazing! 

A little miracle to get my mind off the ugly and back onto the Light. It was almost as if God was telling me, "Just like this, I have perfectly arranged everything in your life."

 "When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said "I am the light of the world.  Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." John 8:12