Serve where you ARE

I've been getting several messages over the past couple of months in regards to serving others. Scripture says "we are refreshed by serving others"... specifically, I've thought about working at a battered women's shelter, a homeless shelter, or in a prison ministry. A place where people are experiencing pain and who are in dire need of a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

I've been feeling called to share the message of hope, peace, and faith, that God has brought into my life... to speak with individuals and share my joy with them, to share my testimony with them, to pray for them and reassure them of the love God has for each and every one of them.

Sounds wonderful, but there's just one problem... TIME. I am a mom of a toddler, a wife, co-chair of my church's Hospitality Team, and I work full-time... In give each of these things the attention they deserve, I can NOT commit to anything else that will take me away from them.

But there is something I can do... there is a very special way in which I can fulfill this specific calling. I can serve people WHEREVER I AM.

Now that I've realized it, it sounds so simple... I don't have to seek out a specific ministry or program to belong to or to volunteer with... I can BE a ministry. My own ministry...

Instead of going wherever I go (like most people do, myself included), focused on myself and the things I need to get done... I can actively seek opportunities to be a witness for Christ to the people I encounter each day.

Prayer:
Lord, help me to recognize the opportunities you place before me each day, to get over any fears or reservations I have as a human being and talk to the people I encounter. Help me to be a witness for You in this world... to walk in the Spirit, not in the flesh.