“The thing to do, it seems to me, is to prepare yourself so you can be a rainbow in somebody else’s cloud.” — Maya Angelou
“When we desire to be a blessing, we find that there are many ways in which we can bless others.” — John Templeton
Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. – Genesis 12:1-2
Mission trips have a way of reminding us how much of life we take for granted. We turn the faucet on and expect clean running water. We flip the light switch and expect the lights to turn on and to stay on until we turn them off. If we want something to eat, we open the refrigerator door and decide what we are going to eat. If we want to see a doctor we might have to make an appointment a few months in advance, but if we need immediate attention we can go to the Emergency Room. Unfortunately that is not the case for a lot of people in the world – – especially the rural villages in Guatemala. Even being in COVID lockdown is different for different countries. Guatemalans were on severe lockdown for months. Many of them who ran out of food would place a white flag out front signifying they have run out of food or in immediate need. Hopefully someone would respond ~ ~ and people did!
Although this year the number of patients is limited because of COVID, we have seen more amputees than ever before. Some surmise that diabetes and an unhealthy diet are to blame. It is very sad. How many of these cases could have been avoided with more resources and more education? It reminded me of the saying, “I cried because I had no shoes until I saw a man who had no feet.” We might have more blessings than we think. Thank goodness we can at least provide a wheelchair to make life more tolerable.
Sometimes we have no idea what others are struggling with in their life. The Apostle Paul said the following to some Ephesian elders, “In all this I have given you an example that by such work we must support the weak, remembering the words of the Lord Jesus, for he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ” (Acts 20:35)
How can you help support the weak?
Prayer: Gracious God, thank you for the many blessings in my life. Help me be a blessing to others. Amen.
