Laced With Grace

I had a good day at work; my dad has told me many times that it is a privilege for a person to have a job that they like. I am blessed – I don’t like my job; I love it.

I’m working with yet another different level of population this year. This is my first permanent assignment in a POHI classroom. POHI = Physically and Otherwise Health Impaired. Among the impairments, CP, birth injuries, pre-birth injuries, traumatic brain injury, down syndrome, autism, vision impairments, sickle cell anemia and a general description of “cognitively impaired”.

I cannot describe the range of emotions that I feel when I work with these wonderful, gentle people. I know that there are many “at-risk” populations, but the people that I’m working with this year are fragile in many ways. They are not only physically fragile (with the lowered life expectancy that comes along with that fragility), they are emotionally and mentally at risk as well.

Sometimes I want to cry – could this have been prevented somehow? (in the case of birth injuries, this is a very real question) . How can I help? Should I help? Or will my helping come with the penalty of the loss of muscle tone?

But most importantly, how do I relate to all of these people, as I see them as God’s children?

Kindness (being nice) tells me that I should “do” for them. Love dictates that I make them work to keep what they have. Love touches my heart and tells me to be gentle, and it strengthens my heart and tells me to be firm.

Love allows me to see them as people – yet forever children.  The “least of these”, and yet, someday, those who are last will be first – these fragile ones must be the most precious.

Sometimes, in my spiritual walk, I feel as though I’m “stuck” in that childhood. Always in need of something. Needing help, yet needing to work it out for myself.

My struggles, although different, allow me to feel love for that person in the wheelchair, doing her “laps” around the edge of the work floor (we are a sheltered workshop).

Matthew 25:45 Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ (ESV)

This week was going to be crazy. There was no way I could do everything that had to be done. Every time I thought about it I started to panic–so I refused to consider it. All I could do is do the very next thing that needed done and go from there–there was no other option. It was tempting to try to control it all and get it all wrestled into coherent places in my schedule.

Today my Lord reminded me that He was in control.

It started with a library book.

We had an overdue library book. This is not uncommon–with five book lovers and 25 allowed library books every two weeks there are bound to be missed books. Rachel hadn’t seen it in weeks but I had the notice in my hand that said it was overdue. We had 5 minutes to get out the door and we NEEDED to take that book back. So we did the most important thing: we prayed. Lord, please show us where Geronimo Stilton… before I got out the “is” my hand lay on it, stuffed into the over packed book shelf in their room. I never would have found it on my own. We got in the car and left.

Next it was a bag of enzymes.

In our hurry to get moving (we had to get to my mother-in-laws and help her make 100 chocolates of several type for my brother-in-laws rehearsal dinner this week) I left their bag of enzymes (which they have to take anytime they are going to eat) on the kitchen table with no backup that I knew of. After getting the kids working on their school work and helping my mother-in-law get started on the candy, I realized my mistake and sent one kid after another to search and see if there were any spare enzymes. The oldest said no. The youngest said no. As I was planning on making a quick run home to get more I sent the middle child to check on more time. She dumped out the bag and found a baggie with just the right amount of enzymes at the bottom.

After that it was a paycheck and the perfect library books.

Issac was feeling sick so when we finished I ran him home to have a bath and then watch a movie while the girls and I ran to the library. When we stopped I checked the mail and discovered that paycheck was there (another praise). We added a stop at the bank to our trip and then headed to the library. While there I was having a chat with the Lord about needing a good book or three in the midst of all this business. While in the middle of that prayer I looked down and here was a series that I hadn’t read before that was just my style–and there were four of them (which is important because I am a book-a -night girl.)

The gift of rest.

After running some other errands, which included receiving a huge bag of fresh produce from my mom–which I needed but hadn’t had time to get at the store, I got home to find a very sick little boy crying for mommy. This kid didn’t just want mommy, he wanted to spend the next four hours sitting on her lap–which he did. I sat there with my little one refusing to move while the rest of the family made sure I had food, a drink, even chocolate and read a book–a whole book, without feeling guilty about not doing what needed done. He finally fell asleep lying there and when he woke he was much, much better–and so was I.

Finally–He reorganized the rest of the chaos that was to be my week so that now the priorities are apparent and I can focus on those. I had an email in my inbox that let me know that several things I thought would have to be done this week needed to wait till next. Yeah! Suddenly my schedule was cleared significantly and I could focus on the important stuff.
God is SO GOOD and He used the little things throughout the day to remind me that He had the big things in control–that He would make sure that the important things got worked out.

13Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” 14Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. James 4:13-14 NIV

How has He reminded you that He is in control?

God of the Universe, how awesome that you care about a lost library book and that a little boy needs some mommy time. Thank You for taking care of the little things and the big. Thank You that we don’t have to plan our every moment, that You, the Creator of the Universes, know every hair on our heads and are in complete control.

“Salt, when dissolved in water, may disappear, but it does not cease to exist.We can be sure of its presence by tasting the water. Likewise, the indwelling Christ, though unseen, will be made evident to others from the love which He imparts to us.”
~Sadhu Sundar Singh~

I came across a powerful quote while reading an article about different world religions, “One of the sneaky things about {world religions} is they use our vocabulary but not our dictionary.” I don’t know about you but that sends a shiver up my spine. We, as Christians, need to know the differences of the different world religions and be able to confront the differences with truth and compassion. How do we do this?

As Christians we need to be able to know and explain the basics of Christianity.

I believe it is important to be knowledgeable of the core of Christianity. We need to be able to present atonement, salvation, the Trinity, and the nature of God in general. And most important, the basic defense of the resurrection (without which, our faith is in vain!).

We need to know this in order to be able to recognize copy cat gods or copy cat religions. I define, these copy cats as anyone who adds or subtracts anything written in the bible. I believe there is no excuse for Christians not to be articulate in what they believe and why, and this means being informed about the foundation of your beliefs.

Now this is where some believers differ, some believe we need to “be fools for Christ and hit hard” and basically bop the lost sheep over the head with our words. Others believe we need to just be “examples” and not rock the boat. I believe we need to be somewhere in the middle.

Now Col 4:5 says:

“Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.”

As Christians we need to let our answers always be filled with grace and seasoned with salt. “Salt is a symbol of lasting concord, its purpose is to protect food from corrosion and preserves it unchanged” (Strongs). When Christ walked the earth he not only talked about God’s judgment and justice but also about his forgiveness and hope. Also his message never changed no matter the circumstance (salt).

So how as Christians do we combine the salt and the grace? How would the disciples be if they were walking on earth right now? I believe we need to “know how to answer everyone” with love and grace, and do so with salt (unchanging truth). I believe our time of being Christians by example only is over. Instead the love that we impart on others (because of the love Christ gives to us) along with the salt of our words will make Christ evident to others.

Heavenly Father, help me to pepper my words with salt and grace. Help me to be able to give an account for what I believe and why. Thank you for sending your son to die on the cross for my sins. I love you. Amen.