How What I Do Still Matters
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Scripture: Psalm 90
Worship: Watch on Vimeo.
Family Resources: Our team has created great church at home resources for children and students.
Take it Further: Because Kindness Really Can’t Wait By Terre Lucas
On the spur of the moment, I flew home to engage my then tween-aged nieces in blessing their parents and grandparents. When I arrived, I gathered the girls in a room for a “secret” meeting. I’d not seen them in a while, and we were so glad to be together. There were hugs, giggles, and chocolate all around.
I shared with the girls that we were going to open a “pop-up” restaurant in their homes and that their parents would be our guests. They were going to help me make jambalaya and a tasty dessert. The girls were also to host and serve the dinner; write and perform a song to express their love and appreciation for their parents; and create a “dance floor.” Their busy parents would appreciate reconnecting with an after-dinner dance.
Fast forward to 2020. Again, without much notice, I decided to go home. When I arrived, my seven-year-old niece, Brooklyn, determined that she would welcome me, even though she would not be home that evening. Her grandmother spoke of her excitement on the day of my arrival. With the help of her mom and grandmother, she set out to ensure I felt the positivity that embodies her room. Everything was in its place. The Hallmark channel was waiting for me. They’d added a surge protector to accommodate my electronics. Best of all, Brooklyn had made her bed with her favorite smiley face sheets!
The next day, Brooklyn entered her home and presented me with a mask she’d sewn for me. She also gave me a journal and a pen that she’d purchased with her own money. Mindful of my early morning prayer/writing habits, she was supporting my connecting with God.
The elements Pastor Wes mentioned in today’s message are all there:
God, I thank you for this day. Recognizing it as a gift from you, I receive it,
Inseparable from your love and grace. I look forward to sharing the rewards
of this day that I may direct others to you. I live my life with joy. Amen.
However, short and troubling our lives may be, daily, we can create memories, display his character, reinforce social norms, and point others to him. Yet we ask, “How does what I do still matter despite the transcendence of a Holy God and the transience of unholy little me?” Our actions matter as we are God’s eyes and ears, hands and feet, and his voice on this earth. We make it harder than it needs to be. Look around for ways to meet each moment with promise.
This call goes beyond family kindness inside our homes. It extends to being in a meeting, noticing who should be present but is not, and making decisions considering how proposed outcomes will affect those who are absent. Better yet, kindness is figuring out why you are meeting without their representation and intentionally making sure it doesn’t happen again. It’s being a leader and allowing people to see the real you, not the perfect Instagram you. Kindness encourages others to believe that God can use them as unholy as they are.
Moses, the author of Psalm 90, knew that God was with him, and yet he asked:
Come back, God—how long do we have to wait?—
and treat your servants with kindness for a change (v. 13, MSG).
We ask the same thing. We must remember that God’s been waiting all along. That said, he will “return” to us when we return to him. A sign of our return to him is our outpouring of Christian hospitality to his children.
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We’d love to hear from you. Please share with us below your thoughts and insight. We would love to see Take it Further be a place where as a community we dialog, and together we all take the conversation further.
*Note: If you wish, you can look up this and other Bible passages online at youversion.com
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