Thursday, May 14, 2015

Spilling Grace


"It's all about me!"

We live in a world where selfies proclaim this point over social media every day.

But what if there's an underlying cry in our current selfie craze? What if the message is signaling our struggle to be present, to capture tiny moments, to make life count for something? Maybe even to be noticed.

 Recently I attended the funeral of a local farmer's wife. The farmer served as a prominent member of our small-town community, well-known employer, school board representative, and active in the local church.

Unlike her husband, Suzie served quietly. She worked hard on the farm, raised her children, loved her grandkids and helped in her church unobtrusively. There was standing room only at her funeral.

I thought about the reason I attended Suzie's funeral. I hadn't really spent any significant amount of time with her for years. The last time I saw Suzie was in the grocery store probably a year or more prior to her death. Yet she always made me feel like I mattered, enough to pause in her busy day and chat for a few minutes.

Women simply want to know they matter.

Two years ago, storm after storm battered our family, devastating my faith. Darkness enveloped my soul, blinding me to God's presence. I couldn't see Him anywhere. My wounded emotions led my thoughts down paths of rejection and abandonment. Late into the night, I sat on my bed and cried out to God, longing to see His hand change our circumstances. Instead I heard the still small voice I used to know so well.

"You can't see Me, child, but I see you."

He never took his eyes off me.

Months passed and the storm stilled; I came away with a new knowledge of God's love. I also learned the importance of noticing the people who cross my path each day. My prayer is that my life will spill grace upon each one as I pause to let her know I see her,  leaving her with the feeling she matters.




{ COMPEL enhancement/tip - First sentence hook, sharing a bit of my story, sticky sentence (phrase "spill grace"}






7 comments:

  1. Oh to be the woman who serves quietly. Confidently. The woman who gives life through encouragement to those who surround her. I know a woman like this and one day, I pray God will use me in much of the same way.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I really enjoyed your post. I think my favorite line was: women really want to know they matter. How true! Powerful. Cheering you from the Compel Linkup and from Purposeful Faith. Come join in on the #RaRalinkup on Tuesdays on my blog too. It would be fun to have you.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thank you for sharing your story and for your lovely comment on my blog post. It sounds like we're both still reeling from the storms from our not so distant past. I pray God's hand be on both of us as we continue the path to full recovery. We do matter...but we have to believe it...I'm still working on that!

    ReplyDelete
  4. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I love your reference to the "ordinary woman" who touched so many. Too often my to-do list is overcrowded with tasks at hand instead of lives to touch. I wonder how ordinary that woman really is?!
      (Sorry for the deletion and re-post...I'm having trouble with my google ID :-/ )

      Delete
  5. Hi Grace! Thanks so much for sharing and reminding me "You can't see Me, child, but I see you." Love that!
    Kim Stewart (fellow Compel member)
    www.kimstewartinspired.com

    ReplyDelete
  6. Amazing how powerful those lessons we learn in dark times are. Have a great weekend.

    ReplyDelete

I love to hear your comments! Feel free to leave your blog address or email so I can personally respond.