Because Life Isn't a Solo Sport

"It's what we do." 

Our church has coined this slogan concerning our attitude of love and service towards the world around us. 

After all, God's word spills over with instruction regarding our conduct with others.

Romans 12:14‭-‬18
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight. Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.


Ephesians 4:32
Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

The examples go on and on.

Selfless love? Forgiveness? Patience? Compassion? Humility?

It's what we do.

So, I suppose it should be no surprise that this was exactly what was shared from our Harvest family upon finding ourselves in a conundrum.

                            

As most of my life events, this intros with me screwing up...

It's 8:45 on a Wednesday evening, and we're leaving our midweek children's ministry program  (Awana). Even though serving is one of my favorite parts of the week, it had already been a long day and I still had quite an evening ahead of me.  As Jamie and I sleepily dragged ourselves to the car, I realized...

I lost my car key.

Now, I realize this may not sound terribly earth-shattering.  However, if you've seen our church, you'll know that tracking down a missing single key is the equivalent of finding a needle in a haystack. It didn't help that I discovered a convenient hole in my bag, nor that any spot I had traveled through would have also housed a myriad of children throughout the course of the evening. It certainly made me wish I had held onto one of those darn whistle key chains all these years.  😠😠😠

Trying to not let panic take set in, Jamie and I carefully searched every spot we could think of. This led us to cross paths with a group of ministry leaders who were just winding down from the night's activities.  They could tell we were in need of some assistance, though I was so embarrassed to have to confess my blunder.  I searched for a nearby hole to crawl into, but no such luck. It really stings when our shortcomings are put on display, particularly to an audience that I hold in such high esteem. 

But I wasn't met with judgment or scoffing, like how so many folks envision Christians to respond.  Despite their own busyness-or sleepiness- they dropped what they were doing and joined our hunt.  A dear friend, who was still there with her own children, had come back into the church and refused to leave until she knew we could get home.  Even the gentleman who jumped our car last year after Awana joined in (I think he's our church-designated hero).

We must have looked in every possible place 10 million times.  
Not one complaint was expressed or a gesture of aggravation shown.

By God's grace, the key was found. It must have fallen through the perfectly timed hole.

I thanked our search party and apologized for being an idiot.
Though I was still mortified, I was met only with grace...
"Don't worry about it...it's what we do."
-Sarah, leader of our children's ministry and one of the kindest people on the planet


It's interesting, though, how God uses our faults.  I get SO FRUSTRATED with myself for the million things I seem to screw up time and time over... things I forget or misplace or am late for...the chaotic mess of my functionality. But our God knows our need and answers abundantly.  Even me...little ol' ridiculous me.  He showed up with His community when my weakness was shown and provided strength in numbers.  It was an opportunity to remember that, though we always strive for a better version of ourselves, it's ok to lean into those around us.  We were made to do so...collectively morph our weaknesses into strengths, letting the love that's shared outweigh our deficiencies. 

May I remember this in the moments when I drive right into the self-reliance pothole and lose traction.  May I also remember the destination of us as a whole, and not solely on my own agenda. That I may not only lean in for help, but give it freely.  We're not meant to take the journey alone.

Romans 12:3-5
For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.

1 Thessalonians 5:14
And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all.