The Bear Necessities
The PAT Edition 12/17/15
The Countdown is on...
Monitor yourself for high levels of stress and take a moment to regulate your clacker!! Your body and mind will appreciate your efforts.
Our LS Demographic Data...
A great message for this time of year from a blog I follow: Ruth Soukup@Livingwellspendingless.com
A few months ago I attended the funeral of a friend of ours from our former church. Ms. Jenile was an older woman, one who had taken us under our wing from the moment we arrived there, a woman who lovingly taught both my girls Sunday School and who volunteered in the office during the week.
She was a woman who always showed up, not to be front and center, but to be in the background, serving wherever she was needed. Later, when I served on the children's ministry team, I always knew she was the one volunteer we could always count on, the one who would be there no matter what, never to take charge, but just to shower every child with as much love as she could.
She gave of her time--and her heart--without ever complaining that she was too busy, or too old, or, after was diagnosed with lung cancer, too sick. She gave to the end, always with a cheerful heart.
And while I sat there and listened to her friends and family recount how willingly she served, I couldn't help but think that hers was a life we should all be striving for. Because while we were sad to have to say goodbye, her funeral was a celebration of a life that had made a difference.
Ralph Waldo Emerson once said "a great man is always willing to be little." Along those lines, someone else wisely noted, "success consists of doing the common things in life uncommonly well."
To a world that values grand gestures and celebrity, my friend Jenile--who spent much of her life namelessly toiling in the background--may not have been considered a success.
May we all be THAT successful!
My challenge for you this week, as we head into this busy holiday season, is to adopt a servant's heart. Look for small ways to bless the people around you, quietly and humbly, without expecting anything in return. I promise there is always something you can do!