Samaritans

"For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'" Matthew 25:35-36

"But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him.  He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine.  Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him.  The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper.  'Look after him,' he said, 'and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.'"  Luke 10:33-35


Most likely, you've heard these passages before.  You, like myself, could probably recount any number of lessons learned and sermons given based on these passages.

But here's my issue....
If these passages are talking about complete strangers, how does it work?  How do we show love and help those who need it today?

As I was driving into the city today I, once again, passed someone on the corner begging for change.

My heart breaks and yet I fail to do something about it.

I fail to act like the Samaritan.  I fail to act in the ways that Jesus asked of us.
Why?  Because I'm afraid.


To me, today's world is not a place to act out in love.  It is not a place to do something kind for a complete stranger.
It is a place where that is 'dangerous.'  A place where that is just something we don't do.

There's gotta be a way around that though.  There has to be something that I can do and that others can do.
Beyond just giving money to an organization.  Beyond volunteering time at whatever place.  (Don't get me wrong, those are important things to do.)  There has to be something for my daily life.

So, if you have any suggestions, please feel free to share!  I am always interested in shared ideas!

One more step

Alright, here comes some more of my heart.  I'm going to trust you to keep it safe.

I miss my dad.  Though, you should already know that.

What you may not know is that I have many "extra" parents.  And I love every one of them so deeply.

They all, in turn, care for me.  They are all over the country.  I am also always gaining new parents everywhere I go, and I tend to travel a lot.

I gained a new set of parents within the last few weeks.  They attend my church, and have actually agreed to be my first volunteer Adult Leaders for my Youth Group.  I am very excited for this year at church.

Now back to the part about missing my dad.

This morning, when I arrived at church, my new Michigan dad was at the door greeting those that entered.  I was running late and as I walked up to the door, he opened it and said "Now there's my daughter!"

My heart leaped.

Guys, as I sit here typing, and crying of course, I am drawn to that image of a Father greeting his child so excitedly.  I have not heard a phrase like that in thirteen days shy of a year.  After the year that I have had, and after the last few months of growing and changing; making decisions, and having to relearn to trust God, this phrase was healing.

God has always been my "Daddy," yet I have struggled with calling Him such.  Until now.  His love for me as His daughter has not changed.  Every day He looks at me and calls to me with such excitement.  He is my Father.  I am His daughter.

Evening Hymn

I struggled for a little with what to write tonight.  Today was exhausting, and my brain is fried.

So, I leave you with this:

"Be sure to sing the Morning and Evening Hymn in your chamber devoutly, remembering the psalmist, upon happy experience, assures you that it is a good thing to tell of the loving-kindness of the Lord early in the morning and of his truth in the night season."  Thomas Ken



Glory to thee, my God, this night
For all the blessings of the light;
Keep me, O keep me, King of kings,
Beneath they own almighty wings.

Forgive me, Lord, for thy dear Son,
The ill that I this day have done,
That with the world, myself, and thee,
I, ere I sleep, at peace my be.

Teach me to live, that I may dread
The grave as little as my bed;
Teach me to die, that so I may
Rise glorious at the aweful day.

O may my soul on thee repose,
And may sweet sleep mine eyelids close,
Sleep that may me more vigorous make
To serve my God when I awake.

When in the night I sleepless lie,
My soul with heavenly thoughts supply;
Let no ill dreams disturb my rest,
No powers of darkness me molest.

Praise God, from whom all blessings flow,
Praise Him, all creatures here below,
Praise Him above, angelic host,
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

- Thomas Ken

Grueling Work

Today, I worked for the Flint Trolley Ice Cream & Cafe.  It was fun, but it required hard work, and I get to do it all over again tomorrow.  I actually enjoy doing the labor.  I'm tired, and I will be more tired after tomorrow, but it is worth it.

One of my absolute favorite times of year is MasterWorks Festival.  For 3 years, I've worked on the Tech Team.  It is grueling.  Five straight weeks of conditions that only the truly insane sign up for.  I love it.

The work seems to never end.  The work requires something from me....it requires everything that I am, and everything that I have in order to be completed.

The intrinsic rewards are incredible.  (And even some extrinsic rewards too).

Faith requires nearly the same amount of work, of attention.  Yet every day, I fail to give God my everything.

So, maybe it takes restructuring my outlook on Faith.

Faith requires work.  Hard work.  Grueling work.  But, I enjoy grueling work.

Friends?

Well, I succeeded in starting today by spending some time with God!

I've been reading through "Let God be God: Life-changing truths from the book of Job" by Ray Stedman.

Job has been my favorite book of the Bible for a very long time (my blog is even named after the book of Job).
Here's what I learned this morning:

"Suffering is much more than an intellectual problem.  It's an experience that engulfs the body, mind, and soul of the sufferer.  Those who provide neat theoretical and theological answers to the "problem of pain" are of no help to people who suffer."

"It takes courage and honesty to admit that there are no easy answers to the problem of pain.  It takes genuine love to stand by people when they are suffering, to simply be present with them instead of offering a lot of empty platitudes or self-righteous accusations about hidden sin."

"Job himself admits that he speaks rashly, but he does so because of his incredible pain and grief.  Anyone who has undergone deep, unrelenting pain knows how suffering can grind down the human spirit.  When Job speaks out about his pain, his friends should listen to his emotions and understand his torment; instead, they argue and attack."

"Job's three friends never ask God for help in understanding Job's problem.  They never pray with Job.  They never ask God for open minds, sensitive hearts, or an enlightened understanding so that they can truly help their friend."

"That's the difference between theology and the experience of a man taught by the Spirit.  Theology can be very clear and right, but it is all in the head.  When you deal with the pain of a human life, you must add a deeper dimension, a dimension of compassion and Christlike empathy.  You must authentically love the afflicted person.  Christlike love opens the door of the human soul to receive the light of God's Spirit."

How many times in a day, do I not pay attention to someone else?  What they are going through?  What they are saying?
Probably a lot more than I can even imagine.

That's a problem.  A huge one.  If I'm not authentically loving every person I meet, then how do I anticipate being able to display Christ?

That's hard to do.  Authentically love every person I know.  Goodness gracious.

Well, I can start by A) shutting my mouth and authentically listening to what they have to say, and B) Praying for them and with them.
Who's with me?

So...Day 2 and I almost went to bed without adding a post.....but hey, I remembered and that's what counts....

I know that sometimes God works in unique ways.  But more often than not, I forget to look for His work.  I forget to pay attention.  I forget. I get busy. I just don't want to. And blah blah blah....more excuses.

My devotional (Jesus Calling) for tonight says this:

"I am a God who heals.  I heal broken bodies, broken minds, broken hearts, broken lives, and broken relationships.  My very presence has immense healing powers...The healing may be instantaneous, or it may be a process.  That is up to Me.  Your part is to trust Me fully and to thank Me for the restoration that has begun..."

In the past year I have been broken in each of those ways.  The whole time I have been aware of God, and aware of His healing.  Yet, I have not been able to ask or allow Him to restore me.

However, if Trust is all it takes to ask Him to restore me, to heal me. Then by golly, I think I might try to do just that.

Guess that means I've gotta put in an effort and do something.  I must act on that trust in order to actually believe that He will be in control.  So for me, step 1: start my mornings a bit better, in prayer and in scripture.  (I'll let you know how that works out for this Night Owl)

Reflections

I'm going to take some time and devote myself to writing some sort of thought(s) down every day for at least a month.

This past year has been the absolute hardest of my life so far, and I'm only in my early 20's.  Somehow, I've gotta figure out how to bounce back and keep going and even more, move forward.

So, stick with me if you will, while I write out my thoughts every day.  Some days they may be great, some days they may be depressing.  But through it all, God is in control.  He knows.  He knows what's going on.  He knows my heart.

So the first installment isn't all that uplifting, just some midnight thoughts comin' at ya.....

I miss my Dad.  He was mine.  He was special.

I was his Miami (My Emmie).

He taught me how to get a spoon to keep
going around a cup or pitcher when you
stir the liquid fast enough and let it go.

I’ve survived one year without him.
And truth be told, even if he’d still been alive
I wouldn’t have talked to him very much. It
just wasn’t our style.  But he would have been
there.

What would I have accomplished if he hadn’t
died?  Would I have enjoyed things here
because I didn’t have to deal with grief?
Or would things have been the same?

I don’t know how to cope with this. I don’t
know how to deal with it.

Grief is hard.  It hurts.  It's strange to be grieving the loss of my father.  Many have said 'do what you need to cope' 'grieve however you need to.'  Well, ya know.....I've never been through this.....I don't know what I need to do to cope, or how I need to grieve.

But I do recognize the things that make me joyful, the little things that make me smile:
Pouring boiling water into my french press on top of coffee grounds.
Drinking that delicious coffee.

Successfully making pancakes (subbing banana for eggs, and adding red raspberries on top).

Being productive and feeling accomplished.

A new episode of a really good tv show.
Hot tea (an antioxidant blend that I call Elephant tea because it has an elephant on the front of the box).

A bowl of my absolute favorite ice cream (Turkey Hill - Southern Lemon Pie).

A large bouquet of fresh flowers.

Counting down the days until a special event.

So these are a few of my favorite things....and when the dog bits, and the bee stings, and generally when I'm feeling sad.....these are what I will look to and hold close.

I praise my God for His love and provision of my favorite things, especially at the right moments when I need them most.