Pondering. Asking. Wondering.

After a day of loving our community with Hope Church on Saturday, I am left asking myself and God a lot of questions the last few days.  We had a lot of great conversations while we worked and processed afterwards. I love, love, love to ask the question “Why?”. Sometimes it can be quite a frustrating question to ask. When I know the WHY behind something, then (and sometimes ONLY THEN) I can grasp it. Sometimes we know the why in the moment. Sometimes we have to wait a while to learn why. Sometimes we have to wait until heaven to learn the answer to a question that we long to know.  But, there’s nothing like knowing the WHY behind a situation right in the moment. If God truly cares about the details of my life, then these are questions I need to ask Him and myself regularly…

Why do I live where I live?

Why am I planted where I am planted?

Why do I work where I work?

Why am I married to the person I am married to?

For some it might be, Why do I go to the school that I go to? the tennis club, the whatever?

Regardless of the way we really want to answer those questions, if we are followers of Jesus, the honest answer SHOULD be – to glorify God. In the simplest of forms…keeping the ‘Main Thing’ the ‘Main Thing’, we live to Love God. Love others. And make disciples who make disciples. So, we don’t have to add anything extra to our calendars to fulfill this mission…God’s mission. It’s a matter of living on God’s mission in our everyday, walk-around lives….with intentionally. So, the questions, the prayers then become…

How do I love (and serve) God and love (and serve) others where I live?

How do I love (and serve) God and love (and serve) others where I go to school?

How do I love (and serve) God and love (and serve) others where I work?

How do I love (and serve) God and love (and serve) my spouse?

How do I love (and serve) those who look, act, and think different than I do?

How do I love (and serve) God and others in my everyday, walk around life?

Your life…my life… has purpose and meaning. So much more than going through the rote motions of getting up, eating breakfast and packing lunches, going to work or class, fixing dinner, playing tennis, taking your kids to a swim meet, walking the dog, fixing the brakes on the car, having a drink or ice cream with a friend, attending the PTA or civic association meeting, etc.

Imagine…

• we were doing all these things not to simply check the box …going through the motions, but to intentionally pour ourselves out – loving our neighbors, spouses, colleagues, teachers, employees, grocery clerks, friends, frenemies and enemies as ourselves.
• we went to bed at night with the attitude of ‘last man standing’ out-serving one another – not in a competitive way, but in a genuinely loving way only because that is what God called us to do. Jesus was sent to serve, not be served. Then, he sent us to do the same.
• we, as those who profess to be followers of Jesus, actually believed and acted like King Jesus was really on the throne…was really in control… and that all things really do work together for my good.

Imagine that.

That’s my wish…my desire… to live my life with intentionality, out-serving one another, believing and acting like Jesus is King of my life and He has my best interest in mind….and that all things (good, bad and otherwise) work together for my good. I may not understand the why…. but I will trust him.

How can I love (serve) you today?