Saturday, August 5, 2017

Ministry to the Minister


Yesterday, some of the Sisters of Strength had a short term mission trip to help a fellow sister in need. They and their husbands arrived at my farm shortly after 8 am, armed with mowers, weed eaters, pruning shears, box cutter, and servant hearts. In six short hours, they accomplished more on my property than I could have done in six months.

Just as important, if not more so, they sat with Sam, moved him to a wheelchair and rolled him around outside to see the progress, prayed over us, sang over Sam, and encouraged my weary heart in too many ways to list. 



 

After Sam's wife died 22 months ago, I became his caregiver, as most of my blog readers know. I've cooked countless meals for him, managed his finances, paid his bills, encouraged him, carried him to the errands he's needed, accompanied him to the doctor.  I've done what needed to be done. Not long ago, I moved him into my home.

I'm taking care of Sam because I gave my word, because I'm called to it, and because it's the right thing to do. I'm not anyone special. I'm just doing what has to be done. Sam's as sweet as can be, but, when added to everything else I've been doing, this is still hard. 

There are only 24 hours in a day and, try as I might, I've been unable to squeeze more hours out of it. I have a more-than-full time ministry. My day starts at 5 am and I rarely stop long enough to sit down until well after dark. I don't like to waste a minute, and I love a busy life, but the additional responsibilities have stretched my capacity past what I can do.

As a result, many things have been left undone that should have been done. Mowing, weed eating, trimming shrubs, maintenance of machinery all take a back seat to feeding a dying man, helping him in and out of a chair, and giving his medications multiple times a day. 

Yesterday, the Sisters of Strength did what we are all called to do. They helped a fellow sister in need. The difference they made in my backlog of work was incredible. They bore my burdens and shouldered my load.

Even more remarkable, though, is what they did for my heart. My hope. My joy. They gave me a much-needed break outside doing the things I love to do and had sorely missed. 

Last night, I basked in the glow of the day as I remembered all we'd done together. I didn't spend one minute feeling like I had left Sam without care, because they provided for every need.

This, body of Christ, is how we should care for one another. This is what happens when we clear our schedules enough to have time to serve as Christ serves. This is how we show the world what the love of Christ looks like in flesh-and-blood terms.

This is love, and it's how we draw people to Christ. It's how we change the world. It's how we cast out darkness...by shining the incredible light of Christ  into every hurting circumstance.

Imagine for a moment how the world would look if the 2.2 billion professing Christians served one another, and the world, the way the Sisters of Strength served Sam and me yesterday. 

It would be a different place.

Friends, if we all do our part in loving one another and loving our neighbors, we will have accomplished what Jesus intended us to do. So let's do it. Find a need and meet it with the love of Jesus. No one person has to do everything, but we all have to do something. 

It's past time. Let's get started. Take an hour today and serve someone with love in the name of Jesus. 

"Bear one another's burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ." Galatians 6:2 niv
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Please like and share if this blog post has touched your heart. It extends our digital reach in significant ways. Thank you.

In case you missed it, here's the link to yesterday's post: When Ministry Means Small Jobs, Big Love, and Dying to Self

If you feel led to partner with this ministry (US, Middle East, the digital world), here's the link to give your tax-deductible donations: Global Outreach Acct 4841 

Or you can mail your check or money order to: Global Outreach/ PO Box 1, Tupelo MS 38802. Be sure to put Account 4841 in the "for" line
#servantheart 

Friday, August 4, 2017

When Ministry Means Small Jobs, Big Love, and Dying to Self


The work of caregiving is hard. The hours are long. When the person receiving care is in your home, it's a 24/7/365 kind of job. If the care-receiver is too weak to do for themselves, the caregiving involves everything from preparing and feeding food to emptying and cleaning bedside commodes.

There's nothing easy about it.

Mother Teresa often talked about doing small things with great love. That's how she cared for the poorest of the poor in Calcutta, but she didn't invent the idea. Her philosophy for ministry came straight from Jesus. 

"When you've done it unto the least of these my brethren, you've done it unto me..." "Love one another as I have loved you..."

Yesterday was a hard day, as some days are. I started the day full of energy, but found I'd slept through a problem in the night, and had a lot of cleanup to do. It was one of those not-much-goes-right days, and I was quickly exhausted by it.

One refrain played in my head: "Small things, great love..." Every time I thought of those words, I was reminded, "Least of these, done to me..." Those few words fueled my work yesterday. 

Throughout the day, I prayed, "God, give me a servant heart that doesn't balk at the hard tasks." To be perfectly candid, that's not the kind of heart I had at the beginning of the day. I wept off and on all day, not because the work was hard but because my heart wasn't quite right.

 By the end of the day, though, I wasn't begging for a changed heart anymore; I was thanking God because He'd already accomplished it.

That heart-change has nothing to do with whether or not I have a "good" heart. It has to do with the fact that I have a good God. A faithful God.

When we ask God to make us more like Him, He'll do it and take delight in the doing. 

Yesterday, I counted on God's grace, and He didn't let me down. 

No matter how small, stinky, or difficult the task, we can do it with great love if we allow the love of Christ to fill us and work through us. 

There's one other requirement for doing a small job with great love, and it's the one we like the least: dying to self. If I am to do the hard jobs of caregiving with great love, I will have to die to myself and my desires. I'll have to live for Christ and those He loves.

What did I want yesterday? I wanted to wear a summery dress and go out for lunch with friends. I wanted to laugh over our meal and worry about nothing more complex than whether or not to have dessert. I wanted all my housework to be done and extra money in the bank. 

Instead, God's work for me yesterday was to die to that dream, and spend the day caring for an elderly man. To wash soiled sheets and clothes. To clean up the potty chair and mop the bathroom. To prepare food that couldn't be eaten. To weep with those who are too worn out to weep. To rejoice over the tiniest of victories. To die to self.

When those jobs were accomplished, the things I wanted seemed trivial and trite. They didn't matter at all. At the end of the day, I could honestly call it a good day. 

What I remember about yesterday is not the mess that was made nor the things I cleaned. What I remember is the love that was shared. I hope that's what Sam remembers, too. 

If you think of us today, pray that I have a servant heart, willing to do the hardest tasks with great love because I'm not just serving Sam. I'm serving Jesus.

If you're facing hard tasks, try doing them this same way...ask God for a heart that loves even in the most difficult situations. Relinquish your desires and embrace those of our Father, who knows what's best. 

That's what ministry is all about: dying to self so we can do small things with great love in the name of Jesus.

"The King will reply, 'Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'" Matthew 25:40 niv
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Please like and share if this blog post has touched your heart. It extends our digital reach in significant ways. Thank you.

In case you missed it, here's the link to yesterday's post: When You Have a Plan but God Has a Better One

If you feel led to partner with this ministry (US, Middle East, the digital world), here's the link to give your tax-deductible donations: Global Outreach Acct 4841 

Or you can mail your check or money order to: Global Outreach/ PO Box 1, Tupelo MS 38802. Be sure to put Account 4841 in the "for" line
#servantheart 

Thursday, August 3, 2017

When You Have a Plan, but God Has a Better One



Yesterday, I wrote about my tractor being stuck in the ditch. If you missed that story, here's the link : The Problem of Stuckness and How to Overcome It. The Sisters of Strength (my small group) planned to come on Friday and get the tractor out of it's stuckness. 

As it turns out, God had a different idea...

I was hanging out clothes on the solar dryer (aka clothes line) and heard men talking about a dog. I couldn't see any men, but the voices were unmistakable. 

Taking care of Sam had worn me nearly out, but in a good way. I was so tired that, for a few minutes I thought I was having an auditory hallucination. Since it wasn't scary, and I didn't have time for a psychiatric breakdown anyway, I decided not to worry.

I went to the barn to feed the bunnies and saw a couple of men in the pasture. They weren't talking about dogs any more, but they had the same voices I'd heard. The talking was real. No hallucinations after all.

Later, Mr. Tractor Driver told me what happened. He tried to get the stuck tractor out with his tractor, without success. Some men were standing around on the road, waiting to start work, so he went to talk to them. In the conversation, he mentioned that he had a tractor stuck in a ditch and needed some help. 

One of the men asked, "Is that, by any chance, Leanna's tractor stuck in the ditch?" 

He said, "Yes, it is." 

Then, the God moment occurred. The man said, "Well, we can come help you get her tractor out of the ditch." And they did. 

Just like that, the talking men became the tractor-moving men. In a few minutes, they got the tractor out of the ditch and freed it from stuckness, and we were all happy when that tractor was ready to bush hogging the pastures again.

Here's the point:

It's easy to get stuck in life, especially when we least anticipate it. One wrong turn, one misjudgment, and we can find ourselves in the midst of consequences we never expected. I myself have garnered a few of those unexpected sequelae over the years. It's not always easy to get back on track again.

As one who's usually pretty good at making a plan, I tend to make a back-on-track plan right away. The problem is that my plan is not always the one God has in mind.

I suspect I'm not the only one with this problem.

There wasn't anything wrong with my dear friends helping to move the tractor, but it meant a lost day of bush hogging. God's plan kept the tractor going with no more down time. 

My freshly bush hogged pasture testifies to the goodness of God's way.

Our Lord has a plan and is ready and willing to help us in time of need. His thoughts are higher than ours. His ways are better than ours. 

If we find ourselves in difficulty today, let's stop agonizing about our situation and take it to the One who loves us most, our Heavenly Father. Ask Him to reveal His plan and His ways, then follow them. 

Our ways may get the job done, but God's ways are always better.

"'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans for welfare and not calamity to give you a future and a hope.'" Jeremiah 29:11 
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Please like and share if this blog post has touched your heart. It extends our digital reach in significant ways. Thank you.

In case you missed it, here's the link to yesterday's post: The Problem of Stuckness and How to Overcome It
If you feel led to partner with this ministry (US, Middle East, the digital world), here's the link to give your tax-deductible donations: Global Outreach Acct 4841 

Or you can mail your check or money order to: Global Outreach/ PO Box 1, Tupelo MS 38802. Be sure to put Account 4841 in the "for" line

Wednesday, August 2, 2017

The Problem of Stuckness and How to Overcome It



We had a little excitement at the farm yesterday.The tractor driver who shall remain nameless (Mr. Tractor Driver, or TD) had planned to bush hog the horse pasture. All kinds of weedy things are growing that should've been clipped ages ago, because they're going to seed. This is especially bad because my horses won't eat yucky weeds, so we don't need anymore bad seeds being cast about.

Anyway, Mr. T D motored over to the Blue Springs Gas and Grill on the blue Ford tractor and filled up the motor and my weed eater gas can. I'd been meaning to get gas, but I just couldn't get to it. That's a common problem in this kind of situation, I believe. The situation being that I've turned my dining room into a nursing home and bedside potty.

But I digress.

He was tanked up (literally - with diesel in the tank) and ready to roll. Mr. TD'll have to explain how all this happened, but he drove in the gate to the pasture and decided to make a turn so he wouldn't go in the ditch. As I understand it, the bush hog decided he would go. In the ditch.

Somehow, one wheel went in the ditch, then another one. I'm not sure exactly how the bush hog accomplished this, but it was definitely the bush hog's fault.

Mr. TD decided to just motor on down the ditch and come out the other end, but that didn't work out too well. Somehow, one of the back tires got stuck in the air. I've never found air to be all that sticky, but it was today. Mississippi humidity, probably.

When that happened, two tires were stuck in the ditch and one tire was stuck in the air, and Mr. TD couldn't decide how to get it unstuck. He decided to come talk to me about it, but I didn't have any experience with being stuck in air. 

I suggested we pray over it and see if God would miraculously get the tractor out of stuckness, but, I'm ashamed to say, I can't remember if we did that or not.
I have had many problems that didn't include stuckness over the years, and God has always helped me out of them. He has a lot of grace with me...because I'm in such need, I guess. And because He loves bad-girls-turned-good so very much.
All of this to say, since I couldn't remember if we'd prayed about it or not, so I finally did last night, and, of course, our sweet Jesus helped us out. 
Well, we're not exactly helped yet, but we will be. Just a few minutes after I'd prayed, The Sisters of Strength messaged me that they are coming to help and to tell them three things I need done. I told them about the tractor and the stuckness problem and they said they would fix it. The Sisters can do ANYTHING! 
So there are many lessons we can draw from this adventure. First of all, be careful about who or what leads you around, because there are plenty of things that will lead you in a ditch if you're not on your guard.
If you aren't careful and get in a deep ditch-of-life, it's harder to get out than you might think, so stay out to begin with and simplify your life.
Sometimes, you need your friends to help, so choose GOOD friends. 
Finally, pray about everything. Jesus said the Holy Spirit would be our Helper, and He meant it. 
Second-finally, we should always give thanks, and that's what Mr. TD and I did. We thanked God that we would probably get a good story out of the stuck tractor, if nothing else.
"Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:6-7 nlt
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Please like and share if this blog post has touched your heart. It extends our digital reach in significant ways. Thank you.

In case you missed it, here's the link to yesterday's post: Caregiver Chronicles: Focusing on the Future

If you feel led to partner with this ministry (US, Middle East, the digital world), here's the link to give your tax-deductible donations: Global Outreach Acct 4841 

Or you can mail your check or money order to: Global Outreach/ PO Box 1, Tupelo MS 38802. Be sure to put Account 4841 in the "for" line

Tuesday, August 1, 2017

Caregiver Chronicles: Focusing on the Future


Yesterday, I offered Sam some dinner he didn't really want. "I better eat it so I can get well," he told me. 

Getting well is not one of Sam's options, but I didn't argue. When he gets to heaven, he won't have to do a thing to heal his body. He'll be completely healthy when he arrives inside.

We've been reading about that beautiful place lately. Last night, we read through the "good" parts of the Revelation. River of life. Trees that bear a new crop every month. Leaves that heal nations. No tears. No sorrow. No sickness. It's an amazing place and Sam will be there soon.

"What do you want to see first when you get there, Sam?" 

He didn't hesitate for a second. "God."

"You don't want to look for family?" 

Sam looked bewildered. "No. I want to see God. Really, He's all there is. All that gold don't matter. It's just gonna be dust under our feet."

"What about second, Sam? What do you want to see next?" Since Sam loves to grow things, I thought he'd want to see the trees growing along the banks of the river of life.

"Well, I'd kinda like to see my baby that died, but I don't know how I'd recognize her. I think I'll be content if I just see God. All I really want is to be there." He leaned back on his pillow. That was all he had to say on the subject.

Sam condenses eternity into one simple truth: Being in the presence of God is all that matters.

The more I've thought about those words, the more I've realized their truth. If we understood this one principle, we might live a little differently. Maybe a lot differently.

If being in the presence of God is all that matters in eternity, (and it is) pleasing Him ought to be the most important thing now. The latest fashions, the cutest shoes, the fanciest food, the biggest house, the best of whatever our heart desires today...none of that matters. 

The only eternal significance those things have is how much they take our hearts away from pursuing the paths of righteousness.

That truth stings a little, doesn't it?

Pause for a moment to consider the certain truth of eternity and the only thing that matters there - being in the presence of God. Consider, then, the life we should live now in preparation for eternity in God's presence. 

Are we living a life that prepares us to see God? 

Are we seeking to obey in all things? 

Are we striving for less sin and more righteousness?

One day, we'll meet our God face to face. Neither the stuff we wanted nor the stuff we accumulated will matter a bit. The only thing of significance will be our relationship with Him. 

Shouldn't that relationship with our Lord also be the matter of most significance now?

Let's take a look at our lives. On what do we focus? Men - do you love your wives as Christ loved the church? Women - do we respect our husbands above all others? Do we actively pursue righteousness? Forgive when offended? Love our enemies? Pray for our persecutors? Love our neighbors as we love ourselves? If Christ is foremost, we do.

If that's not how we're living, let's ask for forgiveness and make a fresh start.

As Sam has realized, eternity is a lot closer than most of us realize. We need to live ready.

"...and the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His bondservants shall serve Him; and they shall see His face..." Revelation 22:3-4 nasb
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Please like and share if this blog post has touched your heart. It extends our digital reach in significant ways. Thank you.


In case you missed it, here's the link to yesterday's post: Caregiver Chronicles: Ten Ways to Help a Caregiver

If you feel led to partner with this ministry (US, Middle East, the digital world), here's the link to give your tax-deductible donations: Global Outreach Acct 4841 

Or you can mail your check or money order to: Global Outreach/ PO Box 1, Tupelo MS 38802. Be sure to put Account 4841 in the "for" line



Monday, July 31, 2017

Caregiver Chronicles: Ten Ways to Help a Caregiver


If you've ever been a caregiver, you know there are some things your friends and family do that help so much you can hardly believe it. There may be some things that don't help much, but I haven't had many of those yet.

A few things have been game changers for me. Just before this started, Kandy Walker brought paper plates and gave me "permission" to make this easy on myself. I would never have considered this before, because I'm a silver-and-good-china kind of woman, but I'm using paper plates, bowls, and cups right now, as well as plastic spoons and forks. Not every time, of course, but in general. (I'm sorry to admit this, but I'll worry about the environment again later.)

Disposable products have been a huge help. Otherwise, I would be washing dishes constantly. Unloading the dishwasher is one of my least favorite tasks, so it has decreased that work considerably. I'll go back to regular dishes when this caregiving is over, but for now, I'm going with easy.

Sonja and Jerry Iverson came by yesterday with strawberry shortcake and whipped cream for Sam. They brought everything they needed to serve. I didn't have to find a thing for them. I was shocked when Jerry pulled a disposable bowl and spoon out of his bag. When I realized he and Sonja had brought the bowl so I wouldn't have even one tiny extra duty, I wanted to weep with gratitude.

They didn't hand the bowl of deliciousness to me so I could feed Sam. Jerry picked up the spoon and fed Sam himself. 

On Friday, Jerry came by to sing and pray with Sam. While he was there, I asked him to help me shave Sam. Yesterday, he anticipated the need for another shave, and came equipped with razor, shaving cream, and a towel. They cleaned up after themselves. When he was done, they took the wet towel home with them.

Sonja gave me a beautiful gift yesterday. As they were settling in to serve, she said, "We're here for Sam right now. You can sit with us if you want, but we'd like to give you time to do whatever you need to do." I'm not quite used to that idea yet, but I embraced it. I listened to them sing with Sam from my seat on the screened porch, where I did some long-overdue writing, finished emails to missionaries, and read a book.

It was like a mini-vacation that recharged my soul in ways I never expected.

Later, Bill and Linda Buchanan stopped by. The top part (the bowl) of my birdbath was broken. I'd put it in the wagon but hadn't decided how to dispose of it yet. It was a little too heavy for me to carry, but I'd intended to put it in a garbage bag and, somehow, transport it to the garbage pick up at the road. 

Bill asked about the fractured concrete mess. When I explained, he and Linda announced, "We can carry it together." That's what they did. We put it in a garbage bag and they hauled it off. 

Bill grinned. "That's one more thing off your list." He was right.

In case you've wondered, I'm not writing about this journey with Sam to get a lot of views, so you'll feel sorry for us, or so you'll stop by to see us. I'm writing to help us all understand how to be a caregiver and how to help a caregiver.

Here's ten easy ways to help a caregiver:

1) Give the caregiver permission to make it easy on themselves. Offer tools for "easy" - paper plates, bowls, cups, disposable utensils.

2) Anticipate needs you can meet, and bring what you need to meet them.

3) Take your "mess" with you. Don't leave anything extra for the caregiver to clean up afterwards. (Everyone has done this and it has been a HUGE help.)

4) Ask about the "to-do" list. Pick one thing on the list that you can do, and do it.  

5) Read Scripture. Simply reading thorough a book of the Bible, one chapter at a time, is a great blessing. It tells the caregiver (and the patient) that you'll be back, and it blesses them because Scripture never goes forth without doing a work of some kind.

6) Sing. You don't have to be a concert-quality singer. Bring a CD you enjoy (and a player) and sing along. Familiar hymns are especially appreciated. 

7) Take the entire burden off the caregiver for a few minutes. Thirty minutes to sit on the porch and read a book is a rare luxury for a caregiver, and a priceless gift. 

8) Hugs and encouragement. "You're doing a good job." "I'm proud of you." "I'll be back to help again." Those are words caregivers hear all too seldom. 

9) Be lavish with love. Caregivers are hands-on people. Be generous with hugs.

10) PRAY.This is the most important thing of all. Pray for strength, patience, rest, and whatever else you can think of. Be sure to let the caregiver (and the patient) know you're praying. 

Several people emailed, texted, or messaged me yesterday to let me know they were praying. It was a huge encouragement. After two very hard days, I dreaded yesterday. When it was an easier day, I felt like their prayers had been answered. 

There are people all around us who are caring for loved ones in short-term and long-term situations. They need our help. Body of Christ, Jesus expected us to love each other so lavishly that the world would stand in awe. They'd see our love and say, "I want some of that." 

If we do our part like we're supposed to, onlookers will be drawn to Christ by what they see. If you're not a caregiver, help someone who is, and do it with love.

"By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." John 13:35 nasb
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Please like and share if this blog post has touched your heart. It extends our digital reach in significant ways. Thank you.



In case you missed it, here's the link to yesterday's post: Caregiver Chronicles: When the Caregiver Needs Some Care Given 

If you feel led to partner with this ministry (US, Middle East, the digital world), here's the link to give your tax-deductible donations: Global Outreach Acct 4841 

Or you can mail your check or money order to: Global Outreach/ PO Box 1, Tupelo MS 38802. Be sure to put Account 4841 in the "for" line

Sunday, July 30, 2017

Caregiver Chronicles: When the Caregiver Needs Some Care Given


It's a good thing my friends are looking out for me. If not, I'd probably have collapsed by now. 

For those who don't know, my elderly neighbor Sam moved into my home earlier this week. 

He was already on the farm when I moved here in 1989. He worked for me until his health began to fail. He still lived in the one bedroom cottage he's occupied since 1960 until his move a few days ago. 

I've looked after Sam ever since his wife died. Carried him to the grocery, helped him with his food, prepared meals for him, managed medications, and gone with him to doctors' appointments. In addition to full-time ministry, writing, and caring for my own home and property, it's been overwhelming.

The move and those first few days were stunningly hard. Sam had problems I hadn't foreseen, and we needed solutions right away. Frankly, I was so stressed about then that I couldn't come up with a solution if my life depended upon it.

That's when the body of Christ stepped in and did what Christ envisioned. 

One of my friends called from the grocery store. "What do you need right now? I told her. "I'll be there in thirty minutes," she assured me. And she was.

Another friend called with the same question. I could only find one pair of Sam's pajamas. That was no problem. She came bearing two new pairs of pajamas so I wouldn't have to wash so often. 

Those sweet actions are the hands and feet of Jesus in action. 

The dogs needed grooming in the worst way. I've been doing their grooming for nearly two years in an attempt to trim expenses. This time, there was no way I could wrangle enough hours out of the day to make the attempt, so I decided to take them to a new groomer. 

I texted my friend. "Do I have to have them there by 9 am? Because I'm not sure I can get Sam up and out in time." No problem, she assured me. She'd come get them and drop them off. I could pick them up later. When she arrived and saw our situation, she decided to bring them back, too. And take them to the vet for me to get the shots they needed. 

The hands and feet of Jesus were in action again.

Sam was sick on Friday. I'd done all I knew to do, including pray over him and beg God to help. Finally, I asked God to send someone to pray with us. And He did. 

Two friends came by, brought peaches and prayers, and read from the gospel of John. Sam and I were worn out, and it was balm to both our souls.

The hands and feet of Jesus arrived just in time.

When our friend brought lunch yesterday and saw the difficulty Sam was having, she didn't hesitate. "I have exactly what you need at home. I'll be right back." She was. I had no idea what to do, but she'd been in our situation before, and she was right. 

By yesterday afternoon, I was exhausted and ready for a moment to myself. Another friend came with snacks to eat, rocks to paint, and supper to stick in the fridge. Before fun, though, she intended to help me do whatever task needed doing. We did the one I'd dreaded the most, and spent the rest of the time visiting over paintbrushes and rocks.

Last night, I crawled in bed less tired than the night before. As I've looked back over the last few days, the thing that's most remarkable is the love that's been lavished. I've taken my needs to the Lord and He's met them through His people. No one person has done all the work, but many hands and hearts have helped us, supported us, loved us. 

It has taken the body of Christ to do this hard work of loving my neighbor as I love myself, and we, Christ's hands and feet, have done it together. 

There are people all across this world who are loving others by being caregivers. Unless you've been there, you can't imagine how very hard it is. We, body of Christ, can share the load, if we will. 

Today, consider who in your circle of friends and family is serving as a caregiver and ask our Lord how you can help. 

Some of the help I've been given requires hours of time. Others spent less than thirty minutes helping. It's not the duration of the help that's mattered so much. It's the timeliness of it. 

When you help a caregiver do what must be done, you, too, serve as the hands and feet of Jesus. You, too, become the one who loves your neighbor as you love yourself. 

Some of us are called to take our neighbor into our homes. Others of us are called to help them. We all have a part. Which part do you have? Let's be sure to step up and reach out. 

Someone is counting on you.

"Do unto others as you would like them to do to you." Luke 6:31 nlt
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Please like and share if this blog post has touched your heart. It extends our digital reach in significant ways. Thank you.


In case you missed it, here's the link to yesterday's post: Guest Blogger Debbie Pharr: Words of Faith or Words of Fear

If you feel led to partner with this ministry (US, Jordan, the digital world), here's the link to give your tax-deductible donations: Global Outreach Acct 4841 

Or you can mail your check or money order to: Global Outreach/ PO Box 1, Tupelo MS 38802. Be sure to put Account 4841 in the "for" line