What Are We Doing?
James 1:22
Be doers of the word and not merely hearers who deceive themselves.
What Are We Doing?
I was with a group of people from Omaha, where I lived at the time. We had travelled about an hour away to try to repair some homes that had been affected by the floods of 1993. The Midwest had endured torrential rains that made the Missouri and Mississippi rivers breakthrough their banks and the water had damaged thousands of homes in our area. The problem was – the homes that we were visiting that day were so damaged, it didn’t feel like there was much hope. We looked around and wondered what we were doing there, when the owner came in, and told us what it meant to her that people cared enough to show up, in the middle of the worst time in her life, and try. Suddenly, we knew that what mattered wasn’t as much about what we’d get done, but that we were there, showing up to do anything at all.
This verse is one of the foundations of faith for many people. We learn about God’s all-encompassing love, we hear about the way the grace of Christ means we can experience forgiveness in our inmost souls, and we want to respond. We want to take the word that met us where we needed it, and let it show up in the actions we take, the things that we do. Often, there’s a part of us that feels inadequate. What can we really do? How can we really make a difference? Sometimes, the doing is in showing up for one person in a way that says we see you, and we care, and then noticing what we can actually do. Sometimes, the doing is saying yes to being an instrument of love - listening, praying, being present.
It’s not our job to do it all. We can't fix every broken thing we see. The good news is – we get to live in the world paying attention to what we see and doing what we can do. We get to let the word of love flow through us.
Reflection Questions:
1) Think about what fills you with gratitude in your life.
2) How can you let your gratitude spill over and bless someone else?
3) What can you do to respond to one piece of the world’s pain that you see?
Prayer: Dear God, I am thankful for your love present in this world. Help me to show up where I can help someone who is feeling in need of your spirit. In Jesus Name, Amen
