Almost Missed Ministry Opportunity

The boys were all out of the house at a men's ministry activity with our church--Paint Ball. It was just me and Sarah for the entire morning.  Sarah was looking forward to some girl time with mommy.   I, on the other hand, was thinking about a speaking engagement I had coming up a week later and the talk I needed to work on.  A whole Saturday morning free of the boys would be a great opportunity to practice my talk and spend time preparing.

Sarah's sweet smile and enthusiasm for spending time with her mommy won out.  Plus the day before, I had told her we could be together that morning and it didn't seem right to back out now.

We had pancakes, did a tea party with her stuffed animals, painted nails, and ended up in my bedroom talking while folding some laundry that had been waiting a couple of days to be put in drawers.

It was a lovely Spirit led morning.  Every moment seemed right.   My head had been fixed on doing what seemed pressing, but it was trumped by my heart beating to what was most important.

As I folded the two-day-old laundry, my nine-year-old daughter told me a story.  She told me how the Lord had been working in her life.  She shared about how she experienced the Lord in a new way at a prayer meeting and how the Lord freed her from a fear of what people thought about her hands being raised or her feet dancing as she worshiped.  She then asked me if I had a story to share about what Jesus has done in my life.  And so I left the laundry to wait a few minutes more and shared part of my story (at an age appropriate level) with her. At the end, she expressed how thankful she was to have a godly mom who loves Jesus. Wow.

And I almost missed it.  While sitting there with my sweet girl, I knew I was doing ministry.  Right there in my home, listening to my girl, folding laundry, painting nails, making pancakes--all ministry.

A week later I would be in a room full of women speaking, but I felt like the Lord was reminding me in that moment where my most important ministry truly is found.  It isn't found in a speaking engagement, writing a blog post, ministering on a retreat, or leading a Bible study (although all those are good!), it is found in the everyday activities, in my home, with my family, one on one with the people God places in my path.

That Saturday, the most important assignment the Lord had for me was ministering to my daughter....and I almost missed it.  How thankful I am that He didn't let me miss it!  

"By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us.  And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren." 1 John 3:16