Seth and I had the privilege of providing childcare for a group of world changers gathered from across the world with a heart for the Ro people. The gathering took place at a retreat center right on the ocean, similar to the Royal Resorts for all my Cancun lovers back home. 😉
I grew close to two sisters, originally from New York who then moved to Myanmar and now live in Bangladesh as their parents work with refugees. One of their favorite things to do was gather sea glass on the beach every evening with their parents. On our last day with them, they brought me every piece that they had collected. How purely they give!
Feeling overwhelmed with their generosity, I insisted they keep their favorite pieces and leave me with the extras. After doing just that, the elder sister ran to tell her younger sister to “remember to keep her favorite and give the rest!”
My heart ached after I realized how I’d unintentionally taught the sisters to hold onto their best and give their seconds to others. How I sometimes believe the lie that God withholds His best from me.
The very next day we were working alongside Uncle Ben in the kitchen of the Kawan house, a community center that serves people experiencing homelessness in Penang by providing breakfast, lunch, a place to rest, bible study and a place to sing hymns. As we prepared the meal, (y’all, we gutted fish and squid!! Proud, Dad?) Uncle Ben spoke to us about the presentation of the food. We served rice with two fish on top and mixed vegetables evenly proportioned on both sides of the plate. He reminded us of the importance of serving the best to each person that would come to receive it. It truly was the most Christ-like thought.
It made me think about how God gives & how God loves.
How He gives us his best, His son Jesus, so that we can experience our best – freedom and life abundantly! A life where our circumstances don’t dictate our feelings or attitudes, but through Him alone our joy and hope will remain steadfast when (not if, when) our circumstances are difficult.
How He loves, gosh how He loves us. It makes me weepy to think of how much Uncle Ben loves each person that walks through Kawan. And how much MORE God loves each of us.
Do we believe God loves us so deeply that He only gives us His best?
Do we live like we believe that?
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“God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins. Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other.” 1 John 4:9-11
