TESTIMONIES OF THANKFULNESS
It's been a busy weekend, ya'll. Saturday we were invited to serve with Ben's cousin, Jason, and his new church plant. We passed out flyers and door hangers concerning their Easter service. All were invited to come, with no regard to the "right" church clothes. It's important to meet people where they are, and let's just face it, some don't have the "right" church clothes. We should be more concerned with sharing the good news than with sharing our fickle opinions of others.
It truly was a great way to help our sister church in their time of need.
If only I had not been sick as a dog...
Two hours in, I was down for the count. I couldn't even hold my head up. The sinus sickness hit me like a train. After a two hour wait in the doctor's office, I got two shots and was sent on my way. After almost passing out in the lobby, having only eaten a bowl of cereal that morning at 9:00, we went home to rest. And eat pizza.
Sundays are always busy days. I have a unique responsibility as a pastor's wife and a small group leader to be present and focused every time I enter the church doors. However, after being on my deathbed last night, I was not feeling at my best and brightest. That didn't stop the Lord from showing up. Our morning service was great! Sometimes it's hard to believe that we get to worship and serve such an awesome God. We worshiped through song, drama, and the hearing of His Word.
After church, we were invited to eat lunch with my parents. Like actually invited. We didn't invite ourselves for once. Chatting with family is always good for the soul. On our way home, I got back into my sickness slump. It was really more of a pity party. I wasn't planning on going back to church tonight. I needed the "rest" to get ready for the week. What a silly excuse to miss a time of worship with my faith family. If I hadn't gone, I would not have witnessed what I believe was the Lord speaking into my heart through our faith family members.
During the last 20 minutes or so, Brother Mike asked for testimonies from our people. "What are you thankful for?" was the question. He led off with his thankful thoughts. He's thankful that"...we're at 80% capacity in Sunday morning worship..." and "...we're out of small group space." Others shared of their thankfulness for our wonderful staff, faith family members they can always call on, and opportunities to serve. I sat in silence, until the Lord's voice was too loud to ignore. I spoke up. After telling every one not to look at me, I said something to this effect:
"I'm thankful for leadership opportunities. It's not my personality to be a leader. If I could, I'd be a silent back-row Baptist, but the Lord had other plans for me. As a pastor's wife, I'm expected to sit on the front row, speak to people I don't know, and lead in a way that makes me uncomfortable. I'm thankful for the challenge. I'm thankful for the opportunity to work with teenagers like this knucklehead. *points to DJ* I never thought I'd be working with older kids. I love being able to pour into them. It's opened my eyes to the fact that I have more to offer than I thought I did."
This week my goal is to be thankful for the many blessings in my life. My goal is to spend less time complaining and more time serving, loving, and giving my all. Because that's what my Savior deserves and asks of me.
All.
It truly was a great way to help our sister church in their time of need.
If only I had not been sick as a dog...
Two hours in, I was down for the count. I couldn't even hold my head up. The sinus sickness hit me like a train. After a two hour wait in the doctor's office, I got two shots and was sent on my way. After almost passing out in the lobby, having only eaten a bowl of cereal that morning at 9:00, we went home to rest. And eat pizza.
Sundays are always busy days. I have a unique responsibility as a pastor's wife and a small group leader to be present and focused every time I enter the church doors. However, after being on my deathbed last night, I was not feeling at my best and brightest. That didn't stop the Lord from showing up. Our morning service was great! Sometimes it's hard to believe that we get to worship and serve such an awesome God. We worshiped through song, drama, and the hearing of His Word.
After church, we were invited to eat lunch with my parents. Like actually invited. We didn't invite ourselves for once. Chatting with family is always good for the soul. On our way home, I got back into my sickness slump. It was really more of a pity party. I wasn't planning on going back to church tonight. I needed the "rest" to get ready for the week. What a silly excuse to miss a time of worship with my faith family. If I hadn't gone, I would not have witnessed what I believe was the Lord speaking into my heart through our faith family members.
During the last 20 minutes or so, Brother Mike asked for testimonies from our people. "What are you thankful for?" was the question. He led off with his thankful thoughts. He's thankful that"...we're at 80% capacity in Sunday morning worship..." and "...we're out of small group space." Others shared of their thankfulness for our wonderful staff, faith family members they can always call on, and opportunities to serve. I sat in silence, until the Lord's voice was too loud to ignore. I spoke up. After telling every one not to look at me, I said something to this effect:
"I'm thankful for leadership opportunities. It's not my personality to be a leader. If I could, I'd be a silent back-row Baptist, but the Lord had other plans for me. As a pastor's wife, I'm expected to sit on the front row, speak to people I don't know, and lead in a way that makes me uncomfortable. I'm thankful for the challenge. I'm thankful for the opportunity to work with teenagers like this knucklehead. *points to DJ* I never thought I'd be working with older kids. I love being able to pour into them. It's opened my eyes to the fact that I have more to offer than I thought I did."
This week my goal is to be thankful for the many blessings in my life. My goal is to spend less time complaining and more time serving, loving, and giving my all. Because that's what my Savior deserves and asks of me.
All.
