The Highest Compliment

My Sunday was certainly a day of worship! Our Sunday School has been on the parables, the past few weeks on the "Lost." Yesterday, I ended that set with the prodigal son and connected all three, the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the lost son. God impressed upon my heart how precious that one that is lost is and how worth it to Him it is to go look for him, invest in leading him, show him how much Christ loves him. People are worth the investment, although their are times I get a little self centered and forget that.

In between services, Tonia called again. I knew something was going on because she has called twice in one week, and we haven't talked for over a year. We parted paths under less than desirable circumstances...hers was a life I invested in that I thought was wasted time. The hardest part for me has been the realization that it is in our nature to use people to get what we need or want. I am often used and often feel used. People only change when God changes them, we may influence them, but we don't change them.

Tonia has a new baby girl, a beautiful little one, and I am so glad she called to tell me. She brought her by and sat with me a few hours yesterday, sharing what has been going on in her life. She has always been very open...she has shared her life with me now for about 8 or 9 years. I have been there with her with all of her kids, shared my home with her, loved her kids, kept them at times while either parent was gone. She has been like a daughter to me and big sister to Katherine. As she talked, I mostly listened, I heard so much of the same story she has been living for a long time now. She made a choice to live her way, although she knows truth. I didn't share much truth this time, she has heard it from me so many times before. I just listened.

In there somewhere she said that she didn't know if I noticed, but she always popped back in when she needed to renew her spiritual foundation. This was a place she felt loved and accepted. (And here I was feeling used!). I told her I was going to take that as a compliment, because that is exactly was I was trying to achieve. I wanted to build a home that people could walk in and feel completely safe and at home, yet be exposed to who God is, be surrounded by His presence, every wall, every space here be a convicting presence. Guess I underestimated who God is...He knew where Tonia was all along, hadn't abandoned her, knew her need, burdened her heart to call me and come by, and began a healing process to heal old wounds! In the time He was working in her, He was also working in me, pruning out that which is keeping me from bearing fruit. It is so hard to love, to have joy, peace, longsuffering, be gentle and good, have faith, meekness, and temperance, when you are focused on self and allow bitterness and anger to take root! Lord, prune away, every soul that you bring into my life is worth it!