Mobile Mondays

I’m learning that Mobile Mondays is time well-spent!

Every second Monday, I volunteer for my local chapter of Meals on Wheels which provides a daily meal and visit to the homebound in my community. I first learned of this from my mama who would take me with her during the summer to either help pack or deliver meals.

In many small ways, my mama taught me the importance of what I’ll call ICU eyes– in other words, I see you eyes. 

My mama’s eyes could see- 

The student who needed dental work, so she provided transportation to the dental clinic. The child with potential beyond his circumstances, so she provided encouragement and insights about scholarships and programs that were available. And the friend starting a local chapter of Meals on Wheels, so she spent summer days out of school packing and delivering meals to the homebound.

This is why I deliver meals on the second Monday of each month and why until the first of the year, I greeted volunteers as they came in to pick up routes every week. It’s a tangible way I remember my mama and honor her memory.

But it’s becoming so much more than that!

God has used Meals on Wheels to widen my perspective– I’m inspired by professionals who take an hour at lunch to serve and by young parents with kids in tow, delivering  meals and setting an example. And I’m grateful for the seniors, who as one used to say, “are just glad to be vertical” and able to help- setting an example for me of what a lifetime of service looks like.

And God has filled me with gratitude for blessings I might take for granted-  health,  provisions, family, and friends.

Most importantly, God is using it to teach me-

Last month, I was able to stay and talk a moment with one of the regular clients on my route. As we chatted, I learned that he and his wife had been lifelong missionaries, returning to Mauldin to retire after serving for years in Brazil and then in Texas. He paused for a moment- telling me He was unsure of God’s purpose for him and his wife now that they are unable to serve God in the ways that had been their life pattern. And then he shared that since their daughter had passed from a brain tumor, they were helping their granddaughter get through college. He concluded, “I guess that’s why the good LORD still has us here, and even though it’s hard to get older and not be able to do everything we used to do, we’re doing what he’s given us today- and trusting Him with that.”

WOW- did he ever preach to me that day, through a simple driveway conversation over the exchange of a meal-

A daily need being met by one . . . a spiritual need being met by the other!

I left his driveway asking myself- am I doing what God wants me to do today?

As the study Proven continues to take me through the gospel of John, I’m learning that this was the way of Jesus- he lived his life on earth, completing the work the Father had given him.

He saw the people in his path, and he met them at their point of need:

For his family and friends at the wedding in Cana, he turned water into wine. With the  woman at the well, he drew her out of the shadows by asking her for a drink of water and then offered her water that would quench her thirst forever. For the hungry crowd, he blessed the available resources and fed the multitude, having baskets leftover.  Toward the terrified disciples, he walked on stormy waters to deliver them safely to the shore. And to the man blind from birth, he brought sight through anointed mud and miraculous healing.

As I have studied these miracles and signs- the heartbeat of Jesus sounds loud and clear. He knew He was there to do the will of the Father and to accomplish his work. (John 4:34) He met needs so that He could relay to those he encountered that He was the one that God had sent. (John 6:38-40) He wanted more than anything for them to believe in Him- in his flesh and blood that would bring eternal life. (John 6:54) He seized every opportunity he had- to see the need and to tell the truth- about who he was and what he had come to do.

And I hear his voice today even as I’m delivering meals-

Are my eyes adjusted to ICU vision?

Do I really see the people in my path- their needs- and the ways God is calling me to meet them where they are and share the love of Jesus with them?

Jesus challenged his disciples in John 4:35, “Look, I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see that the fields are white for harvest.”

He’s challenging me today- to be mobile . . . to open up my eyes and see . . . to sow seeds for his harvest of righteousness. He’s inviting me to join Him- to be light . . . and hope . . . and truth in a world of great need. So I ask- Am I doing what God wants me to do today?

Are you?

I’ll close with prayer and a new song that I learned last night at my church’s Easter Worship Celebration. It puts an exclamation point on this lesson.

We see- and we serve- and we tell-

Because Is He Worthy? – He Is!