Count Your Blessings, Not Your Burdens

This saying was on a church marquee in Columbia. Between this and Russ' sermon on Sunday, I have been revived. The sermon was on radical love--the love that God practices.

About two weeks ago I finally came to the conclusion that God's goal for me was to let go of my past and focus on His present. I decided that God had a purpose for me--to live a life of service to Him. I had been doing that some in many, many demanding, but meaningful ways; but He said to give my all to Him. After one full week of this, I told Ron that I was tired of my job. Every day is full of doing for others. Russ preached on our Scriptures that we were studying for the week, and I decided to go at it again.

About a couple of years ago, we gave up being small group leaders because peoples' problems were getting us down and causing burnout on our part. It is interesting how God keeps bringing those people back into our lives and new ones over and over again. Todd said in one sermon that you may be through with your past but your past may not be through with you. Those people are in our lives as blessings now, not burdens.

My goal and main focus right now is to get Sandra, the homeless girl that was placed in Columbia, a job. She is really an adorable person, well-educated, and well-spoken. Our hold up has been getting her Indian Nation photo pass for ID. She is from a Cree Indian Band in northern Manitoba, Canada. We got the form from the tribe yesterday, had passport photos taken, and sent back the card, photo, and application Express Mail to the tribe all in one day, plus we checked on another job. Tomorrow I am picking her up again and taking her for more job searches. We are being rather selective because we know that we will be her transportation back and forth to work. She needs a job and really wants to work.

Suzanne had Sandra sub for her in Bunco and she and I went together. She had so much fun and everyone was very gracious and friendly to her. Saturday I am taking Sandra to the mall for the women's exhibit. She is a regular in our Tuesday Bible study and is keeping up with Bible lessons past, present, and future, reading all the Scriptures that Russ assigns each week and doing her Tuesday night Bible readings for her study with Ron and Jim. She is absorbing and hungering for the Bible. I gave her a Women of Faith Study Bible which she really likes. Thank you to everyone who is treating her like the wonderful person that she is. She is a blessing, not a burden.

I have been asked to teach Divorce Care 4 Kids at Grace Nazarene Church beginning in February. I was just rejoicing that the class at Maury Hills was over when I ran into Mike accidentally. This class takes place while the parent(s) is in Divorce Care. I am amazed at the curriculum. This gives me an outlet to teach and a chance to make a difference in a child's life helping him and her realize that divorce is an adult problem and that divorce is not the child's fault. The Bible lessons are fantastic. Again, a blessing, not a burden.

Taking care of others also requires taking care of oneself. Today was Girlfriend Day. Four of us from the Tuesday morning Bible study went to Sugar Ridge, Silo Studios Art, and Merridee's for lunch. This is possibly becoming a monthly activity, only next time it will be in another direction. This was definitely a blessing, not a burden.

I love being on the Foster Care Review Board and a CASA volunteer. God is giving me that bit of social work which was one of my choices early in life but I taught school instead. I like to do LAMBS visits with the women from church. Again, blessings, not burdens.

I am also a Reach to Recovery volunteer with the American Cancer Society. That only takes place when a woman has breat cancer surgery at MRH and a volunteer is needed. Maury County is blessed with several volunteers. Again, a blessing, not a burden.

Blessings abound in my life--a wonderful husband who likes to cook breakfast, wonderful children with lovely spouses and children, a mother who is alive, great relatives, fantastic friends, a loving church family, a home, transportation, food, clothing, hobbies, a loving and merciful God and a home with Him.

Now if I could only turn cooking and cleaning house into the blessings that I once felt about them, not the burdens that I try to schedule in between my fun and service.