Category: Watching for God

On the final night of our Salkehatchie mission trip, we all participated in communion. We do that every year and it’s always a meaningful service. But, this year, was a communion service like I had never participated in before.

We were all called to kneel at the alter. As we waited for the pastor to come around, he handed us each an enormous hunk of bread. I’ll have to admit that I found it kind of strange. I have taken communion at many different churches over the course of my lifetime.

Sometimes it has been in the form of perfectly round little wafers. Sometimes it’s been tiny pieces of bread. Sometimes it has been small pieces of Saltine crackers. I have stood up and knelt down and even passed the communion tray. The procedures may have varied from church to church, but one thing never changed.

The bread that represented the Body of Christ was small. This makes perfect sense because communion is remembrance and there are often many people to feed.

It’s also usually a solemn service with few words spoken as we are called to contemplate with quiet reverence, the enormity of Jesus’ sacrifice.

But, that night as I waited for the cup to come around and made a mental note of the very large piece of bread in my hand, the pastor addressed us. He told us that he was sure we had noticed the large portion of bread that we all held in our hands. He told us that grace was big like the bread that we held. He told us that we would have to spend some time chewing on that bread in our hands and that we should spend some time “chewing” on the idea of the enormity of grace.

I suspect his message was specifically meant for the teenagers present, but it struck a cord deep in my own heart.

How often do we just breeze through communion and life for that matter, taking grace for granted? It’s complete forgiveness of sins, forgiveness for anything we have ever done. It’s the bridge to a relationship with God and to Eternity. It’s huge, but like the communion service, we can sometimes allow it to become commonplace.

When the pastor finished offering us all the cup, he pointed out all of the crumbs on the floor. He reminded us that grace was messy just like sin is messy.

After the service, we all went on to individually share the ways we had seen God that week. He was everywhere, but of course, He’s always everywhere just as grace is ever present, we just often don’t take the time to look.

An unconventional communion service reminded me to seriously consider and give thanks for the enormity of grace. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

On a recent Salkehatchie mission trip to South Carolina, my group was working on a roof. If you don’t know anything about roofing, you first have to remove all the old shingles and every single nail. Then you have to replace any boards that have rotted underneath those old shingles.

It takes a while and it’s a lot of manual labor to cut out the old boards and haul up the new ones with the right measurements.

On top of that, the new shingles have to be hauled up on the roof. They come wrapped in bundles and they are heavy, very heavy, but if you broke the packages and carried them a few at the time, it would take forever.

This year, our site leader asked the man who delivered the shingles if he knew anyone with a shingle lifter. That’s a cool little contraption that lifts the shingles to the roof on a little elevator. Turns out he did know someone with one. His son-in-law had one.

Our site leader called him and he agreed to come and help us out. He drove from an hour away to get to us and it was understood that there would be a fee for the services.

When they arrived in a big white van, we found that he and his partner were very nice guys. They joked with us and picked at the kids as they lifted the shingles to one side of the house.

When they were finished, the owner asked our site leader if he was making any money on the roof. When he told him not only was he not making any money, but that the teenagers he saw before him had all paid to be able to come and help with this project, he was stunned.

He actually stopped and addressed the teens and told them in a world where kids only cared about themselves and their electronics that he was thrilled to see a bunch of them giving up time in their summer to help someone. He was well aware they could have been doing something else.

He left without charging us a penny for his services and offered to come back to lift the shingles to the other half when we were ready.

I thought about that man long after he drove away, long after that roof was done. I thought about how we so often talk about being the hands and feet of Christ and letting our light shine. But, we often miss how our doing that inspire others to do the same.

Some teens doing their part in light shining encouraged someone else to be a part of our mission too. Isn’t that what we are all called to do?

Have an awesome day!
Wendy 🙂

On my family’s recent mission trip to South Carolina, my hubby and son were assigned to Site 2 to work on. The home had been recommended to our team and required a massive amount of work.

It needed a roof. The bathroom floor had soft spots and holes in it. You could literally see the ground. The sink was broken from where a family member had fallen on it after having a stroke. The kitchen had holes in the floor and ceiling, and had to be completely gutted.

I remember thinking how badly it smelled when I toured it. I later was reminded of those thoughts, when a pastor pointed out that poverty has a smell that you never forget. His words brought tears to my eyes when I realized I had missed that fact.

The homeowner, Eric, was a man who lived with his mentally disabled mother. She wasn’t very verbal and went to a day care every day while he worked. He didn’t have much to say as we walked through his house. His shirt was on inside out and backwards. He didn’t seem very grateful to me.

I later learned that when they went in to look at the house, he never made eye contact, and at one point, told them to do whatever they needed to do and went into a room and closed the door.

I’m ashamed to say that I don’t know if I would have continued with the walk through. Did he not care that help was coming?

But, people much wiser than I am were in charge. They recognized what I would have considered apathy, as utter and complete embarrassment at his situation. Imagine your house falling down around you with roaches running around and a bunch of people in nice clothes and cars asking for a tour.

He needed help. He wanted help. He was too ashamed to ask. Have you ever been there? Have you ever missed a chance to help someone who has been there?

Personally, I can answer yes to both questions.

The people from Salkehatchie, told him with the amount of work required, that he would have to do some of the tearing out himself, or they would never be able finish.

When our group arrived, he had done just as he had been asked. Turns out he was grateful for the help.

He was working during most of the work, so the kids didn’t get to spend much time with him, but the work they did transformed not only his home, but Eric as well.

When the entire camp toured the house on the last day, the change was amazing. There was a new roof, new carpet, new paint, new bathroom floors and ceilings, new cabinets and sinks, and a brand new fresh smell.

And perhaps most importantly, Eric was changed too. He had a smile on his face as he was presented with a Bible. He had on a clean shirt and he stood up tall. He even asked where the carpet came from so he could put some in one of the bedrooms.

It seems that the work done for him inspired him to continue it. Isn’t that amazing?

Eric’s story reminds me to be very careful and prayerful when deciding who we extend a hand to. Because sometimes those people who we judge as ungrateful or unworthy, are the people who need it most of all.

Perhaps you needed reminding too. I pray I never forget.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

I was reluctant to sit down and write this post. I have so many things going on at the moment. My family is heading to South Carolina tomorrow for our Salkehatchie mission trip. There’s laundry to be done. There are suitcases to pack and where did I put my work gloves?

But, even as I yearned to get my to-do list checked off, I also felt a quiet voice which told me that I needed to take a time out and prepare myself spiritually for my trip as well.

It wasn’t loud or bossy. It was gentle, but persistent. It reminded me that quiet reflection time with Jesus trumps all we can physically do every single time. So I shushed my inner Martha for a little while at least, and attempted to embrace my inner Mary.

As usual, when I obey the calling of Christ, I was not disappointed.

I was reminded how life changing this particular mission field has been for my daughter. This will be her 4th trip. When she went the first time, she was so quiet and shy that she just did her best to scoot out of everyone’s way. It earned her the nickname Scooter. Everyone there calls her that. It’s a name she wears now with pride, one that she will treasure forever.

This year, she has been asked to bring her guitar and lead all of our worship songs in the evenings. She’s been practicing for days, which makes me give thanks for Vanda, her guitar teacher for seven years. Vanda’s time and love contributed to a gift that my daughter will carry for the rest of her life.

It’s so amazing when we have those special moments when we can look back on what has been and we can see God’s fingerprints all over our past. I’m so very thankful for the mighty village that God has gifted both of my children with.

I am reminded that we all have the opportunity and the calling to be a part of somebody’s village. We have the choice to make a positive kingdom impact on everyone’s lives that we touch. We have no idea the difference that a word of encouragement can make for someone or for that matter, we have no idea what kind of difference just sitting with someone and listening to them can make.

There are even times when a silly little nickname can change someone’s life forever. I’m glad I took a time out. Perhaps you need one too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

PS Due to the fact that I will likely spend much of next week on a roof in South Carolina, I won’t be posting next week. But, I’m super excited to see how God will reveal Himself on our trip and I look forward to sharing with you back here. My family would appreciate your prayers.