Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Loving Others

Loving others...what God's love is all about.  Sometimes though, it's hard to know what that looks like.  Sometimes, I want to show love and I commit to doing something that shows love, only to figure out that in doing what I need to do, I have to stick my child in front of the tv for a little bit, or sacrifice making dinner for my family, or put my children to bed later.  Now there's nothing wrong with that in my opinion once in a while.  But in serving/loving others, I never want my children and husband to feel like they are not the people I MOST want to serve.  So sometimes that means saying no or saying I can't do it that way, but I can do it this way...
Anyone else struggle with this?  
And my conversation with God when these things come up often sounds something like this..."God is this an opportunity You want me to pursue?  Because if it is, I want that.  But if it isn't, will You show me that?  I want to serve You the way You want me to."  
Let's face it, it's a lot more fun (at least for me) to get together with a friend who needs to talk than to load my dishwasher, change diapers for an hour.  And it's tempting to want to volunteer to help with youth group and let someone else put my kids in bed that night.  And I'm usually more eager to write a blog post (haha) than start dinner or do the breakfast dishes.  
But what is the work God has called me to?  
Sometimes the work God has called us to is mundane, ordinary and even causes us to wonder...would it really matter if I didn't do it?  Would anyone notice?  
How many minutes a day do I spend putting my sons' clothes on to soak because they both are crazy messy?
How many times do I put laundry in drawers only to have it come out again the next day?
How many dishes do I dirty only to have dinner consumed in 20 minutes and all those dishes sit staring at me?

Oh Daughter, don't go there.  
"Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men...It is the Lord Christ you are serving."

See I love my kids and husband more than life...but even with that love for them, it's not always easy to serve them.  Sometimes that sweet child isn't ahem very grateful.  "MOM!  We're having that AGAIN for dinner?"  Or that man of mine leaves his clothes on the floor and takes dishes upstairs where I find them days later.  Or the baby spits up on the fourth outfit of the day.  And my mind starts going places like...don't they realize how hard it is to keep the laundry up, floors swept, dinner on the table? 
Then I remember that I'm doing it to serve Christ...then the laundry, the dishes, making dinner, vacuuming.  It all seems more important, less mundane, and yes, Someone notices.  
So in seeking to serve others I have to ask myself, Is this something God wants me to do?  Or is this something I want to do to procrastinate or to get out of what He has already called me to do?







1 comment:

  1. I needed to read this today...thank you...feeling the same way but need to refocuses and remember who I am serving...A Great God who does notice!

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