Apparently Mark Twain never said, "The two most important days of your life and the day you are born and the day you find out why." Regardless of who first penned this wisdom, I would like to take a minute to address it. The first most important day of my life is July 16, 1991. (Write that one on your calendar. And for future reference, I prefer coconut pie instead of cake. Thanks in advance. haha.) The second most important date is a little harder to pin down.: the day I discovered why I was born. Wow. I mean, brain cramp, right? While I can't give you an exact date, I can at least tell you what that "why" is. I can tell you that I was born to win people over to a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ by displaying his unfailing love. Boom. There it is. How did I find this out? Well in 2005, I was invited by a friend at church to serve as a summer missionary in a program called Christian Youth in Action. I spent the summer waking up early, teaching hundreds of children, working log hours, even into the night, on small well(over)-worked teams. At the end of the summer I came to a conclusion: I never, ever, ever wanted to spend my summer... doing anything else.
I saw incredible things that year. I saw myself and others over come fear to benefit someone else. I saw children whose lives were full of darkness or pain or nothing at all get a gleam in their eyes after we shared our message. I saw people grow together despite background or circumstance. I saw God change lives. God showed me his glorious plan for my life. To be a vessel of his unfailing love. Now, don't get me wrong. My love fails all the time. (Today, every 20 minutes or so.) But I also rest in knowing that, through my humble acceptance of Jesus as my Lord and Savior, he has made available to me a feast of his gracious resources: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, goodness, self control, and the list goes on. (Galatians 5:22-23) This purpose that God has given me is meant to permeate every moment of my life. While it may be easy to sit back and coast the fact that I am now employed as a full time missionary, I realize that is not enough. I desire, long, yearn to display Christ's love, grace to my friends and family. I want it to characterize my marriage. I want my children to grow up with a loving, graceful Momma. Why? Not so they will admire me or feel loved, but so that they will follow my love back to the source -- Jesus Christ. Please don't misunderstand me. As I said, my love fails constantly. But for today, I wanted to dwell on my goals and desires. Love. Love with purpose. So I am glad to have you, Reader, along for the ride.
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