Our Word for August~Heart of the Matter Studay

I love to go out to eat!   I love the whole experience of picking out what I want to eat and drink.  Then, to have someone serve it to me!  I didn’t have to cook it, and I don’t have to clean the dishes afterwards.  I can have everything exactly how I want it!  But, have you ever been to a restaurant and the service was bad?  I remember eating out for a special occasion with Patrick.  I was sooo excited to have the Raspberry Iced Tea and a Shrimp Caeser Salad.  My mouth was watering for it!  When I ordered, the server said they were out of Raspberry Iced Tea.  Hhhmph.  So, I got the Coke. All wasn’t lost,  I could still have that salad!  Ohhh, I couldn’t wait!  Then the salad came and all was well, until after a few bites…..I noticed the long, black, curly hair mixed in with the lettuce. 

Now, I’m not a super picky person at restaurants and I very rarely send things back, but this one sort of turned my stomach.  We waited and waited for the server to check on us.  That didn’t happen.  So, Patrick went and found her.  She seemed bothered by my request for a new salad.  When she finally brought me a new one, it was over a half hour later, and Patrick had already finished his meal.  So, I took it home.  In this case the server really didn’t have my best interests at heart.  She really wasn’t wanting to do “my will” as much as she had her own agenda.

 I wonder if the Lord ever feels that way with me?  That answer would be yes.  You could say that my “want to” is there (I want to put the Lord’s wants and desires before mine), but there are times where I fail.  I end up doing all the things I want to do and at the end of the day I realize that I haven’t given the Lord my best in service.  So, for this month in the Heart of the Matter Study, I have chosen the word “serve.”

Deuteronomy 10:12  And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul,

  To serve means to fulfill the will of the other person, to be in service of, and to be useful.  Jesus was the perfect example of being a humble servant.  Mark 10:45 says, “For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.” In giving His life for us, He fulfilled the will of the Father.   That fact that he came not to “be ministered unto, but to minister” shows He was a servant.  With Christ as our perfect example, Galatians 5:13 tells us that we are commanded by love to serve one another.    

So, how can a busy Mom and wife serve the Lord?  First of all we need to remember who the Lord has called us to serve.  The book of Titus tells us our job is to serve and love our husbands and children.  We are to be “keepers at home.”  Proverbs 14:1 says, “Every wise woman buildeth her house…”

I heard a very wise, Godly lady once say that her husband and children are her number one ministry.  What she does inside of her home is the focus of her life.  She is right!   However, this same lady uses her home and talents for the Lord every week.  She has people flowing in and out of her home seeking counsel and friendships yet she still manages to keep her husband and children as her number one priority…including home-schooling 12 children!  As a wife and mother, we must realize that our “home” is our number 1 priority and yet still not lose focus of serving the Lord outside of our homes.  

One of the prayer requests I have written in my journal is that of asking the Lord to let me be a blessing to others, but still keep my home my priority.  If we are creative with our time and responsibilities, we can still have an impact on others outside of our home and show a servant’s heart.  Next week, in our Heart of the Matter Study, I will share a few ideas of how to keep our families as the number one priority, yet still be able to serve others as well. (These are ideas that I try to do as often as I can, and some that I want to put into practice) Oh how I want God to use my life everyday for Him!