I was sitting in my window seat chair on Wednesday after work, reading my English/Arabic New Testament, when this verse hit me between the eyes:
“Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.” (Colossians 4:6, ESV)
Any guesses who didn’t win the service with a smile award at Elkhart General Hospital this week? If I had access to the little “Pick Me” emoticons with their hands raised, I would insert a long row of them here, one for each time I was angry or short with someone at work.
Great, I thought. I certainly didn’t follow that verse this week.
I went on my way until the next morning when one of our ministry board members text our Elkhart group with these words:
Ran across this verse in my devotional this morning. Reminded me of all of you…Be encouraged today….
“Let your conversation be gracious and attractive so that you will have the right response for everyone”. (Colossians 4:6, NLT)
Oh dear, I thought. God is really trying to get my attention.
But I headed off to the dentist in Nappanee to get two wisdom teeth extracted.
I stopped at Light of Grace book store afterwards (stay tuned for an announcement from them!) with a piece of gauze still in my mouth, barely able to speak with a half-numb tongue. I bought a book about prayer called Fervent by Prisilla Shirer and began to read.
Sure enough, the next day, slightly loopy after 16 ibuprofen, I made it to page 91 and found this:
Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person. (Colossians 4:6, NASB)
Three times in three days, three different versions in case I missed something… and it wasn’t John 3:16, either, that you might expect to see repeatedly.
God is so good at gently, but forcefully telling us we were wrong! I did apologize to several people. Have you ever noticed that it’s scary to apologize, because you know you might end up right back in another trying situation and fail again? But God is such a good teacher! It was as if He told me, You didn’t ask me for help. Always ask. I always help.
And then I ran across this verse from Micah: (oooooh I love it!)
Rejoice not against me oh my enemy! When I fall I shall arise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light unto me.
So, even though God had to instruct me about my own servant heart…please inspire me with your stories!
Servant Heart Contest
Either on my Facebook post or on this blog, tell me about someone you know who serves with a smile, like this little Syrian refugee Rosetta Byers photographed when we were in Lebanon (thanks Rosetta!). I’ll choose two people to get two copies of Faces of Syria when it comes out in a few weeks. One will go to you, and one to the person you named. The contest will stay open until I post the winners, probably next Saturday night.
21 thoughts on “Service with a Snap?”
My friend Lavina! Always doing acts of service to family and many friends! She has inspired me many times and taught me much on service and serving others!
Esther truly smiles and serves at our store where she is employed. Her gentle demeanor befriends seniors and a lonely co-worker. She has unique perception of the downtrodden, and follows up with notes of encouragement. When I slogged through a difficult time, (I am her minister’s wife and decades older) she clued in to what I was going through, and offered words of love, affirmation and gentle correction for my thinking patterns. Esther knows whereof she speaks. Depression is no stranger to her. She puts one foot in front of the other, until day dawns again. Out of that affliction God forged a bright star on our horizon, named Esther.
A young lady from our church spent last Friday at my house helping me with applesauce. If I would have tackled those five bushels on my own, by 3:00 I would have been collapsed my pregnant body on the couch. And probably had a few hours of more work still to do. But with her help, at 3:00, we were cleaning up the dishes. She even squeezed in time to vacuum the house. I’ll have memories of her servant’s heart for the next year on my pantry shelves.
And this isn’t the only time. This young lady has chosen to not work on Fridays so that she can have time to help others. I know that many moms from our congregation have been blessed by her generosity.
Gina
My sister. She is always busy helping someone somewhere. During my recent surgery and recovery she has done a lot for me.
My friend, Jen Shaum. She is willing to do anything for anybody.
A good friend of mine- Stops what she’s doing with a willing “Sure!”- and inspires me to give without second thought.
Christie Kenaston. She gave up the American dream to follow her husband to a remote part of Ghana, West Africa. There she serves her husband and the village people who she loves. Life is tough, but Christie never wavers in her love for others because her life is poured out for the Lord.
My mom! She mothered 13 of us! And would stay up late doing canning/freezing! And I don’t kno if she complained 1 time. (Shame on me) well I don’t live at home any more, but her acts of service continue! This summer she helped me by sewing for my daughter! And this fall she canned some applesauce for my sister n her family of 5 children! What a blessing!
A dear childless sister at church. She has always been ready to serve others with a smile and loves to help babysit, a huge blessing for the young mothers. And she is always, always smiling, wondering how you are doing, and always, always is ready to serve you, or help you over some problem.
Our Pastor and his wife. Serving faithfully those in the church and in our community!
My friend, Sharon. Always helping someone with something, even tho she has plenty of her own things to do.
Lori….one of the girls that I serve with. She serves with a smile even when it means going the extra mile to do so! She is a jewel!!!
My friend Kari. She and her husband have sacrificially served their neighbors and the church in Puerto Rico for years. They have served alone for many years, but they continue to faithfully follow God’s call on their lives. They inspire me to follow God’s call to minister to the least of these.
It must run in the family Velinda. I thought of Danae Miller. Always the caring one ready to stand by those in need. She is often the first to volunteer when someone is in need. The other week she randomly texted me to see how my day was going even though I hadn’t talked to her in weeks. It was very special!
My pastor’s wife, Ruth Ann.. She does so much for the church, for me and for her family
Thank you Em!! ???? you are too kind.
So that it doesn’t look like we are just nominating each other, I will choose someone else. (Even though Em is a total servant)
Charlene pollard- she was truly the hands of Jesus to me this week. Went out of her way to help me break a several week long headache. I’m not sure which felt better, the relief of the headache and the handmade hot pack or knowing she cared about me. Charlene is always serving everyone around her.
My friend Roseanna, is always willing to give of herself. She does canning for others when they are sick. She has a special touch of decorating at church functions always look so inviting and homey. she has mothered 8 children a set of twins too.
She has a ready hug and likes to give gifts.She is creative and an encourager.
My Mom! Always serving, always cheerfully! Even in the worst times of her life, nearly dead at the hospital she thinks about little ways to help her nurses so they have an easier job. She has opened her home to vagabonds (us!) and 17 boys and a girl or two and grandchildren and friends and family from everywhere. She cooks, does laundry, fixes furniture, sews comforters, preserves food, nurtures any living thing, and lives life more for others than anyone I know.
My dear friend Velinda Miller is a servant heart with a smile and willingness always to bless another’s life.
My friend Ruth was always willing to take care of another visitor when we served together in Haiti. She made many beds, meals and cleaned the house so faithfully. And always had a listening ear.
My sister-in-law Karen serves so many people around her. She collects things to send down to Nicaragua, helps with a Spanish Bible Study, and was such a blessing when Mom was recovering from open heart surgery. She also does a myriad of other things around the farm and is always serving!