When you run a small non profit organization like Servants, every day when you check the mail is a time for great anxiety and great hope. This morning as I went to get the Saturday mail was no different. I was thinking of the credit card bill that is due in the 1st and thinking to myself wouldn't it be great if there was a check in there for $400! That is how much I need to deposit by Wednesday to cover the auto draft for the credit card bill on Thursday. Now you have to understand that was a pretty outrageous thing to think since it is rare to receive a donation larger than $50 and we rarely receive general donations of more than $200 in a given month.
Well like I said I don't believe in coincidences only miracles so when I opened the envelop that was in the mail and said, "thank you Jesus!" it was because a miracle had happened. One generous donor had sent us a check for exactly $400. There was no note, no reason for the amount, no explanation for what prompted them to send it, just a check for $400.
Every day I am humbled to be called to this ministry God has chosen me for but days like today bring me to my knees to say "Thank you Jesus!"
Monday, April 28, 2008
Wednesday, April 09, 2008
Just weedin!
When I was young I had the opportunity to visit my Grandparents on their farm. Sometimes it was on the weekends and sometimes it would be for a whole week by myself. Well I have to tell you, it is a lot of work to run a farm. Sometimes the work was a lot of fun and sometimes it was not as much fun. If you were fortunate enough to be there in the Spring, you might get to ride on the tractor to plow the fields and plant the seeds. If you were there in the Fall, you would get to harvest the hay or the corn. And let me tell you... It is a lot of fun to sit back in the wagon as a child and watch the automatic bailer bail the hay and then like a catapult throw it into the wagon for you to stack! However, if you were there in the summer, (usually when my week long visit occurred) you got to weed! Weeding is tedious, monotonous, back breaking work. You start at one end of a row and if you worked hard enough (which I never did) you might get to the end of the row by dinner time.
Ministry is a lot like farming. It is exciting to sow the seeds! You have that hope of what is to come. You can see those new sprouts of faith as the begin to emerge. Harvesting is awesome. There is nothing better than to watch someone enter into the fellowship of believers and put their trust in God. What lies between though is simply hard work. When you are between the two it is hard to see the fruit. It is hard to focus on the hope of what is to come. But just like weeding it is important. It may be the most important thing. If you don't spend the long hours caring for the ministry/crop the weeds will come in and choke out the whatever you may be growing. There will be no harvest! The sowing will be a waste of time! This step simply can't be skipped.
What is it your ministry that seems like weedin? Is it pouring into people who may not be as "full of the Lord" as you think they should be? Is it dealing with difficult people on ministry teams or in small groups? Maybe it is the time you spend with your family between weekends or vacations. For me it is the time between trips when the last one was a few weeks in the past and next one is a few weeks or months in the future. That is when bills need paid, money needs to be raised, and a lot of administrative tasks need to be handled. But we need to remember that these are just as important as the "fun" fruitful stuff!
So I encourage you today... start weedin with gusto! Remember to do all things as if you were doing them for the Lord! For the harvest is plentiful and it is coming, but the workers are few! If your looking for me today I will be weedin with enthusiasm!
Ministry is a lot like farming. It is exciting to sow the seeds! You have that hope of what is to come. You can see those new sprouts of faith as the begin to emerge. Harvesting is awesome. There is nothing better than to watch someone enter into the fellowship of believers and put their trust in God. What lies between though is simply hard work. When you are between the two it is hard to see the fruit. It is hard to focus on the hope of what is to come. But just like weeding it is important. It may be the most important thing. If you don't spend the long hours caring for the ministry/crop the weeds will come in and choke out the whatever you may be growing. There will be no harvest! The sowing will be a waste of time! This step simply can't be skipped.
What is it your ministry that seems like weedin? Is it pouring into people who may not be as "full of the Lord" as you think they should be? Is it dealing with difficult people on ministry teams or in small groups? Maybe it is the time you spend with your family between weekends or vacations. For me it is the time between trips when the last one was a few weeks in the past and next one is a few weeks or months in the future. That is when bills need paid, money needs to be raised, and a lot of administrative tasks need to be handled. But we need to remember that these are just as important as the "fun" fruitful stuff!
So I encourage you today... start weedin with gusto! Remember to do all things as if you were doing them for the Lord! For the harvest is plentiful and it is coming, but the workers are few! If your looking for me today I will be weedin with enthusiasm!
Wednesday, April 02, 2008
Lions Roar!
Last night I had the opportunity to be the guest speaker at the Windsor Lion's Club meeting. It wasn't anything like Daniel in the lion's den. Actually they were very nice and we had a great dinner(crab cakes) and then I had the chance to talk to them about the ministry of Servants. We had a good time together and it looks like we might have the opportunity to work together on Home Helps in the future.
I always appreciate the opportunity to talk about the ministry of Servants and how God is using us to help make a difference in the world around us. A big thank you goes out to the Windsor Lion's Club for having me, and of course for feeding me so well.
I always appreciate the opportunity to talk about the ministry of Servants and how God is using us to help make a difference in the world around us. A big thank you goes out to the Windsor Lion's Club for having me, and of course for feeding me so well.
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