Much, Much Too Busy For You

"Dear friend, you are faithful in what you are doing for the brothers and sisters, even though they are strangers to you." 3 John 1:5 (NIV)

Running late, I ran back through the rain and into my house to grab my purse and phone. On the sprint back to my van, I noticed a man by the side of the road bent over the hood of his van, phone to his ear, rain sliding down his utility coat. 

Poor man must be soaked I thought, backing out of the driveway. Hopefully he'll find some help soon.

I looked over one more time to see him pacing back and forth in front of the van, talking furiously on the phone.

I knew what I should do but it was raining. I was late to work. I had a million other things to get done today. I just didn't have the time.

Do you live like this? Rushing here and there, always running behind, trying to get everything done with no time left to spare? No time left for anyone or anything but your to-do list?

I find myself in this position a lot. Not because I want to be there but somehow I seem to end up there, more often than I would like. And this day in particular, I was most definitely there.

When my kids were little, they loved to watch Veggie Tales. One episode was a retelling of the parable of the Good Samaritan. As both asparagus walked by the stranger laying hurt on the road, they sang this song:

"I'm busy, busy, dreadfully busy

You've no idea what I have to do.

Busy, busy, shockingly busy

Much, much too busy for you."

The word 'Busy' seems to be the theme song of our world right now. Ask anyone, especially a woman, how she's doing and most likely she'll reply, "Oh, busy." And the person asking the question will probably reply with a nod of her head and a "Me too".

In  3 John, we find a letter written by the apostle John to encourage his friend, Gaius. John heard how Gaius was generous, showing hospitality to Christian sisters and brothers who were traveling missionaries needing help and a place to stay when they came into town. For Gaius, hospitality to the stranger was his habit, and his reputation for friendliness had spread, so much so that John wrote to commend him. 

Gaius stands in stark contrast to another leader mentioned in the letter, Diotrephus, who refuses to welcome the traveling missionaries of the time.  He not only refuses to help them, he tells others not help them also. 

The people we come across in our day may not be traveling missionaries but the theme of 3 John should cause us to ask, how do we see the stranger among us? As someone to welcome in with generosity and kindness? Or as an annoyance or an inconvenience?

On that rainy day the stranger on the side of the road was initially an inconvenience. I was busy and had things to do. Thankfully, God caused me to pause and rethink my hurriedness. 

Pulling my hood on tight, I put the van in park and walked over. 

"Do you need help?" I asked. 

He nodded vigorously and pointed his beat-up phone in my direction. "My son," he said, "my son."

No english. No idea where he was and no vehicle to get him to work. His son interpreted for me. I wrote directions on the scrap of paper he pulled from his pocket, rain smearing the ink as I wrote. 

"Thank you, thank you," he nodded as we parted. 

I hopped back into my van. I wasn't late for work. I still got done all that needed to get done that day. And I had a lot to reflect on and pray over because of a certain stranger by the side of the road.

This New Year let's determine to reflect Christ in how we treat the stranger among us. May we stop our hurry to open our hearts, our minds, maybe even our homes, so we can touch others with His love.


This post is also over at Getting Real Ministries. Please head over there and check it out!

Summer Thankfulness

Summer is fun and long and beautiful and weary for a mom. When needed, pack a lunch and meet friends at the park, stay for hours and take silly pictures.

In so many years from now, you'll look back on those pictures and marvel at how fast the time has gone, how grown the kids are and how you wish scooters at the park were all you needed to make a day great.

So thankful for good friends, fun park and scooters. What are you thankful for this summer? Comment below...I'd love to know!

A Week Without Prayer Makes Us Crabs

Spring break is over and the kids and I are back in school, on the home-stretch to summer vacation. Yes! The break was nice and the rest well needed but during break, the kids and I became what we like to call 'snappy crabs'--our definition for being crabby and grumpy.

And guess who was the biggest snappy crab? Me, of course! I could sense it over break but couldn't seem to get any of us, especially me, out of our funk.

You know what was lacking over break?

~ Looking back it is easy to pinpoint--we were lacking prayer. ~

Those pinchers were out snapping because of one thing---no continual prayer. I didn't wake up and start my day with my usual routine of prayer for my kids. I didn't spend time at night with them in prayer or reading the Bible. Our dinners weren't always together so there weren't mealtime prayers. Yikes! We were out of zone and it showed!

I could blame the crabbiness on plenty of other things--late bedtimes, too much TV, not enough coffee. Those are all valid reasons in my book but I know in my heart the real reason was not enough prayer.

Prayer works. Spend a few days without it and you'll find your step is out of sync. Next thing you know your husband's on your last nerve, you're picking out all his faults and he's barely in the door from work. Those pinchers are out snapping now!

I know how hard it is to develop a prayer routine. And how much harder it is to maintain it. I feel your pain if you're stumbling around trying to fit in prayer among the millions of others things you do every day.

I don't have a magic prayer devotional that will change your prayer life in five easy steps. Or the next best book or study guide or website. I won't even go on and on about journaling your prayers or waking up just five minutes earlier every day--haven't we all heard it before, tried it before?

We all stumble with our prayer life. It happens. So when it does, start looking back. Start reflecting.

~ Become a noticer of your life and the lives of those whom you love. ~

How can the needs of those around you ignite you back into praying again? What do they need that only your prayers can answer? Has anything changed with you or them? Could the changes, the change in attitude, the change in behavior, the lack of love be because there's a lack of prayer?

Don't become hard on yourself and start feeling guilty. Just start noticing, start seeing with your heart what God is telling you needs prayers...maybe it' s your family, your job, your friend, your attitude. Get back on your knees and lift up those prayers. Then watch for the change. Keep an eye out for it. It will happen, I guarantee it.

I put away my pinchers the other day and replaced them with folded hands. My heart is softening again towards my family. I heard giggles coming from my daughters' shared bedroom and let me tell you, that's definitely a miracle! Just last week I thought we might need to pull out the tape and split the room in half just to gain some sanity and now we're laughing.

~ Prayer is necessary. ~

I need it. My family and friends need me to do it for them.  I'm betting you and your loved ones need it too. So get started. No delays, no excuses. And once you start, sit back and prepare to be amazed.

This post is also featured on Getting Real Ministries! Head on over!

It's Time to Enjoy the Watching

I took my son to basketball practice the other night. I needed to get out of the house so I didn't give my husband the chance to offer his services. I just declared I would take him to practice and then we left, leaving at home a sick child, one well child and my husband to be the caretaker. 

I'm so glad I went. I love watching him play basketball. He might be little and double dribble a whole lot but there's something about watching him develop into his personhood that does my heart good.

It was tempting to get other things done while he practiced. I brought my grocery list and, I admit, some cookbooks with--thought I'd get in some menu planning. But for the most part, I resisted the urge to plan ahead. 

Instead, I watched my son shoot some hoops and saw how his form was getting much better. I saw his coach give him high fives and offer advice. I watched my son listen and obey his coach (good boy) then in the next moment, pretend he was in a light saber duel with an imaginary storm trooper (well, waiting in line can be boring--at least he has a good imagination!).

I saw a lot of who he is and who he is becoming and I am so glad I didn't miss it because of some grocery list. Now, I am all about making the most of my time and I do not have any shame in using my kid's basketball practice to get things done.

But I know it is also just as important to sit and watch. Just watch. Nothing else. It's so important to let your heart grow more in love with your kids as they do their thing. Growing closer to each other can happen just by being there.

It's our job to watch them. Not helicopter style watching, more like noticing. It's important to notice them. It's important to let them know you saw them. Let them know you noticed what they did and how you enjoyed the time spent on the sidelines.

We all know time goes by fast and they'll be grown soon. But let's watch for more than that. Let's watch so we can fall in love, so we can show our love a little more.

Enjoy the watching, friends!