No Better Feeling Than Serving Together
October 27, 2009 by Standing on Truth
Filed under Marriage
When I woke up this morning, I had the thought that maybe I was thrown out of a second story window overnight. My husband and I (with about 8 others from our Life Group) had just spent 14 hours remodeling the family room of a disabled couple. Now we were incredibly sore.
But after I started to adjust to the fatigue and pain, I had the best feeling in the world–that feeling of having spent a whole day thinking of someone other than myself, of helping a couple that was stuck in a rut of disability and a house in such need of repair that it probably only contributed to their ill-health, and of working side by side with my husband as we served the Lord.
I even enjoyed learning a new skill–installing a Swiftlock wood floor with a vapor barrier underneath. And as I looked at the finished room, with the newly painted taupe-colored walls and fresh trim, the new wheelchair ramp that our friend spend a few hours carefully and meticulously constructing, and the beautiful floor, I thought back over the day and how the Lord’s hand was in it all. I saw the family that uses this home standing around us with a glimmer of hope in their eyes–hope that the physical pain and limitations, the hospital visits, and the daily frustrations will somehow be made more bearable because of this newly remodeled room to lift their spirits. I think back over how God worked through other people’s hands–people that were not there physically helping us transform this room, but people that were a part of God’s work nonetheless. The manager at Lowe’s who gave us a steep discount on the Swiftlock floor. . .yet another generous manager at a second Lowe’s who bought us the floor trim out of his own money and was ready to give up his Saturday to come help us himself after just meeting us. . .the Grandma’s and Papa’s who babysat all the kids and entertained them for a full day and night in order for the Moms and Dads to work. . .the restaurant owner who provided a free and delicious lunch for all of us. . .the owner’s son who bought us a pizza dinner. . .the grandchildren of the home owners who pitched in and helped paint the front door. . .and God’s favor in that the city dump (which normally costs $30 per truckload) was FREE on the day we needed four loads (this happens once a quarter, and we had no idea when we went). God was there, leading up to this day and during the day. He provided. He encouraged. He uplifted. He enabled. And He showed many people His glory that day, many of whom may have been unbelievers.
The body of Christ in action is a beautiful thing. We could not have completed that room without every single person that contributed to that day, with their unique and God-given spiritual gifts and their willingness to step outside of themselves and help another family. I feel closer to those in our Life Group as a result and I know our lives are changed for the better. I am especially grateful that the Lord allowed me to serve with my husband, as I am now convinced that it is also a beautiful thing to see the one you love serving another human being. It is an experience that I hope we can have together many times over again, and it’s something that I will recommend during those times that we encounter a difficult period in our marriage. . .for I’ve learned this weekend that there really is no better feeling than serving together!
