At the beginning of the year, our
two year old request of new carpet for our rental home was answered. Upgraded
carpet that does not match the bedrooms (which turned out to make the
installation easier) but that is besides the point. My husband had the day off
and took our oldest out on grocery shopping adventures during the process and I
stayed home with our crawler, confining him to the bedrooms.
As the old padding and carpet was
taken out and the new ones put down, I was able to get to know the workers, who
were impressively speedy and knew exactly what they were doing.
As the last of the carpet went down
in the hallway, the gentleman blatantly asked, "How did you get all this?" This referring to our home
and possessions.
I was taken off guard and wanted to
laugh - several thoughts going through my head at once. You mean all this second hand / free / nearly free stuff looks like
something worth having?
And of course, he then followed it
with, "You do not look very old."
Enter more head laughter. And
thankfulness to God for some great genetics and grace to answer the age question
for the millionth time. And then a quick flash back to a
few months prior when another gentleman asked, "why are you doing this?" Why would I go out of my way
to perform a random act of kindness to people I do not know and probably will
not see again.
It was there in these split seconds
that we all have a choice. We can shy away or we can could be honest. We can cover up our faith and take the
credit for the hard work ourselves or we can praise God for his blessings.
"Because of Jesus," I awkwardly, practically
blurted. "He's the only reason I have anything
in my possession. He's the reason I do
what I do."
Before then, no one had questioned
my motives so bluntly.
Preach
the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and
encourage--with great patience and careful instruction. 2 Timothy 4:2
Paul tells Timothy to share the
gospel and be prepared. It is so easy to be caught up in our own to-do lists
that we miss the opportunity to be fully present. We have not prepared or studied
or it is too awkward and no one wants to offend. But you may be the person who plants a seed and points them to the truth and turns a sinner from their ways. The person who
leads them to correction and openly rebukes in love and encouragement.
Praying that at the
height of your success and the climb there, that you would give the glory to
God. That he would be your reason for the goodness in your life and the motive
behind why you do what you do. Praying that those you interact with daily or in
passing would see the difference in you. That your joy would overflow and that
you would always be ready with an answer for the reason of the joy that you
have.
Praying you would have
an opportunity to share your faith this week and that seeds would be planted
and hearts would be opened and eternities changed.
Here's to pointing others
to Jesus throughout your journey.