Luke 9:23
Then Jesus said to all the people: If any of you want to be my followers, you must forget about yourself. You must take up your cross each day and follow me.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
Whew! Was I ever “brought up short” about this today! I was helping my grandmother with her lunch at the assisted living facility when an aide came to sit at the table and help feed another resident. I would guess she was in her late 30s or early 40s. She asked if I was ready for Christmas, and we began to visit. She told me about her four-year-old grand-daughter who is coming… and what she had asked for (and this woman had purchased) as gifts. As she rose to help another resident, she said, “Since I lost my husband, Christmas just isn’t the same.” I asked how long he had been gone, and she said, “a few years… he suffered a heart attack while we were en route to the hospital to see about a family member, and he died in my arms.” I swallowed hard to fight back tears. I told her how sorry I was, and she smiled and wished me a good day as she left.
The aide who came to replace her at the table sat down, and I said, “She just told me about her husband.” This woman looked like maybe she was in her 50s, and she said, “Yes, we commiserate a lot, because I lost my husband, too.” This woman went on to tell me that her husband died a year ago of cancer. She was equally friendly and positive as she talked about her grandchildren and caring for others. Both women were incredibly sweet and attentive to my grandmother and to her table-mate.
When I looked at my scripture outline for these devos and read the verse for today, I knew why God placed me at the facility during lunch. Even in the midst of my frenzy to get things done for Christmas… my worries and concerns about my grandmother, who appears to be in her last weeks, if not days… the general busyness of our day and all of the myriad of other “stressors” we each encounter… nothing is about ME… or YOU! It’s about serving Jesus… being His hands and feet for others… and sharing His Good News at every turn.
The question today is… “How are you doing?” Are you joyful and patient, positive and helpful? Or are you a miserable example of what it means to be a Disciple of Christ? Do you go around with the weight of the world on your shoulders… are you a drag to be around – or a delight? Is everything about you and your troubles… or are you genuinely interested in the well-being of others? Do you bother to find out about their day or what is going on in their life? Or are you too busy letting others know – either by body language, your comments, or both - just how bad you’ve got it?
Jesus is calling us to take up His cross and follow Him… to lay aside the worries of our day and let Him handle them… to focus on loving others and showing care and concern for what is challenging or frustrating them – and to share their joys and triumphs. Again I ask… “How are you doing?” It would seem that most of us have plenty of room for improvement in this area. Are you ready to follow Jesus completely? Are YOU ready to really focus on serving Him in everything? Who needs to know this day that you truly care? Isn’t it time you showed them?
©2012 Debbie Robus
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