Touching lives......

This is a post I ran last year about this time, and I was looking back in reflection, thought it was worth repeating.  It was a good reminder to me to look outside myself and see who I can touch today.  Perhaps it will inspire you as well, to touch the lives of others. 
First of all let me just say that I am thrilled for my blog to be up and running again.....I missed being involved in the lives of those few of you who stop by to read whatever inspiration I might be attempting to convey to you. Thanks from the bottom of my heart to those of you who actually missed me....that warms my heart. I thought I'd share today a little bit about my most recent Ladies' Bible study. We've just finished a series entitled A Woman After God's Own Heart by Elizabeth George. We worked through the workbook and watched the DVD each week. Mostly we enjoyed sharing in each others lives. The last DVD lesson in particular brought out some terrific lessons that I wanted to share with you all. It was about touching the lives of others. Whether or not you have a Christian faith that drives you, you must agree that we benefit from connecting with others in our lives; we benefit from touching lives in a way that television cannot, that "how to books" cannot, that shopping or redecorating cannot.....we need positive human interaction! And in this last DVD lesson, Mrs. George discussed what is helpful to the ministry of a Christian woman. I thought I'd recap what she said.

1) Learn to work it out.....master your priorities. We only have a limited amount of time, and last time I checked it was only 24 hours per day. And some of those MUST be sleeping. She recognized the Proverbs 31 model for us all to use as a standard. We teach by message or by model....EVERYTHING we do or don't do teaches someone something. Honestly, that made me a little squirmy......something to think about. Also falling under this category is developing yourself. Don't avoid ministry/caring for someone else because you failed to take care of yourself or your own insecurity. Work on your weaknesses. If you feel you can't speak, take a class, or practice speaking. Every little practice helps. The more confident you feel, the more likely you are to touch a life...

2) Learn to reach out....learn the names of people and use them. We like to hear someone else call us by name. Plain and simple. You feel touched somehow if someone feels you are valuable enough to remember your name and use it. And let's face it, the more we use their names, the more we cement them in our brains and are more likely to remember them. Proverbs 11:24 encourages us to be a liberal giver and hold back nothing.

3) Learn to look out....go looking for those that are hurting. When you find one, be direct and intentional about helping. Write notes.....we just really  have to write three lines. That easy, but will be oh.so.meaningful. Make a phone call and simply say, "I thought of you, I prayed for you, and I just wanted to let you know."

In conclusion, give totally wherever you are. Wherever you are, BE ALL THERE. Live it to the hilt when you are there. We can all serve, we can all show mercy, we can all be giving. Go forth and be inspired! Just do it.