I listened to an especially good sermon this morning. What I took from it was that God gives you gifts (like skills, talents, resources, etc...), with the hope that you will use those gifts to further the kingdom. We are expected to take care of our families, help others, and to look for ways to serve using those gifts. Earning a profit is good, we are expected to work hard, to care for our families, to care for others who are in need. To use our blessings to bless others. We don't have to be "successful" in worldly terms, to be successful in the eyes of God. He cares a whole lot about our intentions. For example, the success of a ministry is not necessarily measured by the number of people participating, or the amount of money raised. It makes sense to sit back and take account of our gifts. To tally up our talents. I think of this often, but this sermon was that nice nudge I needed, the reminder to do a personal assessment. How am I moving forward in my walk? How am I using my gifts to further the kingdom? What are my gifts? How can I help people feel the love that God has shown me, and be the tool God wants me to be? Talents, and blessings are tools that we are given to do a job, as well as to enrich our lives. We don't own them though. We didn't earn them. Like any gift, things and talents can be taken away. Poof, in a split second, it can all be gone. So this week, I will giving myself a little check up. I will be thinking about things that weigh heavy on my heart, (like foster children, young women making bad choices, food for families in our own community) and doing something to move forward on those things. It doesn't mean I'll be successful at doing everything I hope for, but my intention and my actions will start to get in sync. I challenge you to do the same, and if you feel like sharing your story, I would love to share it on this blog. Have a fantastic and blessed week!
I am helping to prepare a baby shower for a young woman at our church. She is young, just 22. Thinking about her, and what the future may hold for her and her little family, got me to thinking about life at 22. Much has changed for me since I was 22. That was really a difficult time. I didn't realize at the time that it was difficult. I had graduated from college, was having a post college, pre-real life, super good time. I was bar tending, partying, picking up and traveling to far away places to party some more. I didn't really have much in the way of financial responsibility yet, and my parents were living in Egypt-- leaving me in charge of the house and my younger sister. It was an "out all night, sleep all day", kind of life. To be honest, I was setting a pretty poor example for my sister, who at the time was working full-time at a nursing home, and was far more responsible than I was. Looking back at that time, and even later, till about age 25, it make...
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