A number of years ago when I started ministering full-time in a church I found my expectations were a wee bit different than the reality. One of the areas that I found myself lacking in was patience for people who annoyed me. Sound familiar?
I struggled to comprehend why some people just couldn't "get it all together" or "function like normal people" or "behave properly." (I was, and often still am, struggling with the idea that the universe doesn't revolve around me...but that's another blog!)
In this church there was one specific person that I couldn't seem to figure out, fix or even avoid. Let's call her Joan. Joan has gone to be with the Lord but at that time she was an older person with some traits that just irritated the daylights outta me. She always sat in the same place and had the younger kids go get stuff for her since she had difficulty going up & down the stairs. Her speaking voice grated on my ears - she had 3 volumes: silent, loud and screeching. Joan would routinely interrupt services to state her opinion - or give the minister a cough drop, give those singing Mardi Gras beads, or something similar. On top of that she didn't always smell so good.
I remember telling the Lord that if He would just keep Joan out of my way, things would work better. (Oh my Jesus- what an obnoxious person I have been.) I remember our conversation so well because it changed me. The Lord asked me if I remembered my commitment to love His people from an earlier conversation we had. I said yes...but, she's so...! The Lord then very gently said, "Pray for her and watch your love for her grow."
The chastisement of the Lord is sweet although it tends to sting.
I began to pray for Joan. Not the "Oh God do something with her" kind of prayers - but the kind I wanted others to pray for/over me. "Bless her today, Lord. May her heart be filled with Your love and presence." Anything that I needed/wanted for myself - wisdom, discernment, patience, love- all these I prayed for her.
Guess what? Yup - funny how God is always right, eh? (That's just a little sarcastic.) My heart began to turn towards Joan and instead of wanting to avoid her, I looked forward to seeing her each week. I started treasuring her as God's person rather than judging her by my standards. This was a great blessing to me as ministering got so much easier.
The second blessing was unexpected. One Sunday as I was picking up the sanctuary and stopped to help Joan gather her things she said this to me, "I pray for you everyday and am so thankful that God put you in my life." I was stunned. If I hadn't trained my heart through prayer I would have missed knowing that she prayed for me. I would have missed the blessing of knowing her and my life would have been duller for the loss. A few short years later Joan went home to be with the Lord. I miss her to this day.
Do you have a grace grower in your life? They are called grace growers because they help grow grace in YOU! Begin to pray for them. Begin to invest Kingdom time into their lives and watch your life change....watch your love grow. "They will know we are Christians by our love."
Blessings - La
