Oofta, Blogger switched things up on me... it took me a little while to figure out how to post.
Speaking of posts, I have been posting, from my phone, it just hasn't been working. Too many words, I think. I've tried shortening it, several times, but I guess I can only post one sentence at a time and Lord knows I just can't do that! :-)
So I've spent a ton of time thinking this week. Thinking seriously.
Who am I? Reference to my last successful post- what are my ingredients? Am I proud of them? or not? Will I be glad of who I was today when I look back in six months? two years? fifty years? Do half of the things that I spend my time on even matter at all? Will I ever look back and say, "I'm so glad that I took that twenty minutes and spent it googling summer dresses"?
I don't know about you, but I'm thinking not so much in the affirmative...
I was reading one of Elizabeth Elliot's book, Let Me Be a Woman, and have been captured by the idea of being helpful. In one of the chapters Mrs. Elliot addresses the reason that we (women) exist. Why were we created? Well, obviously, for the glory of God. But on a more human level, why? Because there was a lot of work to do in the garden and Adam needed help and company.
Time out: Don't misunderstand me. My thinking is not parked on the whole woman was created for man bit, though that is true, very true, just read through Genesis. However, my thinking is parked on woman having been created to help, to accompany another in general. Woman was created for a purpose outside of herself.
How self centered is this world! I'm afraid that I've let it rub off onto me. I'm caught up in the idea that I deserve something, that I can earn good things in this life, but not only is that forgetting the reason that I was created, it's belittling the God who set the standard which says that I deserve hell!
Modern society says that human beings have rights which ought to be observed, accommodated and satisfied, and within our environment that's a good thing. It puts boundaries on those who would otherwise take advantage of the helpless and weak. But it's missing the point. How we treat each other should be reminiscent of how God has treated us in His generosity, kindness, and mercy, but society has put God out of the picture completely and replaced Him with humanity. A sad substitution.
If God had not been forgotten, would we be teaching the same general principles of kindness (multiplied by the thousands, of course) that are assumed by making room for another's "rights" but with a different reason? Treat your fellow man with respect and kindness because you were not made for your own pleasure, rather than because your fellow man has "rights"...
I love it when I post and my thoughts go all over the place... maybe that's why nobody ever comments, ya'all just can't follow me... Sometimes it's like I only type out every other thought and then it kinda, sorta, mostly, doesn't make complete sense. Minds are like labyrinths, sometimes I get lost in my own...
Anyway, back to what I was thinking about before.
So, I was created for another. For others. My purpose- to bring glory to God and serve my fellow man. Boy is that a little different than I live.
I like the word helpful. Maybe it speaks to the practical, simple side of me. To me, saying, "How can I help you?" is just more, I don't know, fulfill-able than saying "How can I serve you?" Not that anyone ever says, "How can I serve you?" anyway... I'm probably not making much sense, silly little rabbit trail about a word...
Point being, this whole week has been so convicting, I'm encouraged to stop and weigh the choices that I'm making. Is this just simply selfish or can I be a help to someone else by doing this? Is this going to affect anyone else's life? If not, why not, and how can I change that?
At the moment, I can change it by ending this post and finishing the laundry and dishes that I started this morning.
Oh! One last quick note! I tried to post this from my phone but it didn't work. I'm going to South Africa this summer!!! I'm on a team from Grace Community Church and we'll be going to Johannesburg to help out with a Holiday Bible Camp and then Sasolburg to do a VBS type event. I'm so excited! But we need funds! If you 'd like to support us financially, leave a comment and I'll get back to you with how you can do that. If you can't support us financially please pray for us as we get ready to go. I'll keep you updated as we go along, but at the moment there are five of us and it's going to cost approximately $3200 per person. So prayers are needed!!
Ok, now to conquer the dish washer...
:-)
Samia
