So I was reading a blog by an anonymous blogger and it really touched my heart. Make sure you check it out (https://churchwifeconfessions.wordpress.com/).
“I think there is a point when we lose focus about what serving and ministry is. Ministry can be making Americano’s at 4am to put yourself through school. Ministry can be cleaning the dishes after dinner so your husband can get some homework done.”
My second year in bible college was a painful year. I had done horrible the three previous semesters that I lost my financial aid and I was two seconds from being kicked out. I remember telling my friends in a text message and one responded saying:
“Babe, God is going to do something to rock your world. It's going to be so big that no one else will be able to credit for it.”
Here’s the thing, I didn’t deserve a miracle from God. My grades were poor because I neglected all of my assignments. I was ultra lazy. But how often does God give us exactly what we deserve? An administrator gave me a chance to redeem myself. I would being to work for the school for free to pay my debt. This was my first experience of true ministry. It sounds terrible. But it was a gift from God. He was shaping me. My parents could not afford to help me. I survived that summer on crackers and peanut butter. A family that lived on campus would feed me as often as they could. A friend of mine filled my mini fridge with snacks and groceries when she could.
I had no idea back then that God was showing me what service truly is. And I wasn’t working in the front office with my feet kicked up, I was serving groups that came on campus to rent the facilities. I was polishing silverware, making beds, and scrubbing toilets...for FREE! That summer made me better.
See, I’ve been told what ministry should look like on countless occasions. Whether it's how you dress, the number of pins on your Sunday attire or the length of your collar. None of that stuff matters. When I’m wearing my collar, yes, people notice and may even ask me about it; mostly because they wonder how old I am. But when I am serving in yoga pants and a tshirt or going the extra mile when I’m off the clock at work, or helping a neighbor carry groceries, they see my service without even knowing why I do what I do.
I walked into work after my grandfather’s funeral last week and as I was heading to change, I still had my collar on. One of my coworkers said to me, “I knew there was something about you.” She’d seen my service before knowing my status. The collar is just an add-on for me. I have to wear it occasionally. But who I am, at my core, I wear that everyday.
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