Three Word Wednesday :: Rhythms of Grace

“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me — watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”

{Matt. 11:28-30 in The Message}

I’ve read these verses many times. I know and believe them in my head – but my heart is hearing them right now. When life is full, I tend to want to grasp anything – everything? – and hold on so very tightly. I end up suffocating good things.

I don’t want to do that this time. I want to embrace this season and know God is with me, teaching me to trust him moment by moment. God knows it’s easier for me to trust him with the big things than with the ordinary moments.

What God has been teaching me in my everyday life was echoed this past Saturday at an adoptive moms retreat I was helping lead.

I definitely consider myself a writer and not a speaker so I hesitate to say I was helping. But I volunteered to help Hope That Binds’ founder Wendy Wilson with this event. Organizing and planning are my strengths but speaking in front of a group – even a small group as this one was – is out of my comfort zone.

So I prepared for three sessions – one was about peace and waiting for the adoptive mommas waiting to bring babies home. The two others were for roundtables: Fundraising Ideas for Adoption and How to Find Alone Time as a Mom. Well, we ended up only have time for one roundtable and that meant I shared fundraising ideas. But only one person needed that message so we ended up sitting on a couch and talking.

Y’all, the fact I had prepared to talk more than I ended up doing was such a blessing.

I don’t say that because speaking to a group makes me nervous. I say that because my soul needed to hear these other women’s stories. I shared my family’s adoption story that was a faith journey for me like I do sitting at the table with friends. And they shared about peace and waiting and adopting and living. The whole day was an ongoing conversation that God led.

I had prepared to serve and ended being served. {Tweet that.}

Along with the conversations, two volunteers loved on all the moms – including Wendy and me – with delicious breakfast and lunch, more snacks that we could want, and gifts. Toward the end of the day, we all took an hour to spend with God however we wanted. I journaled and read and prayed.

As I drove home, I realized this is how serving others should be. Service doesn’t go one way. Service is about building relationships. Not everyone will become your best friend, but through serving others we get a chance to be part of building God’s kingdom. It begins here on earth by serving and loving each other and continues into an eternity.

I know life is full. But God showed me something about that during the retreat.

While watching a teaching by Beth Guckenberger, an adoptive mom and author who runs a ministry, I remembered those verses from Matthew. I remembered God wants us to live with him. He tells us to come to him and do life with him so we can learn the unforced rhythms of grace.

Then Guckenberger said something I needed to hear: There’s much talk about achieving a balanced life. But life isn’t balanced. Sometimes one thing demands more attention than the other things. There can be a rhythm even without balance – and God wants it to be an unforced rhythm of grace.

That one thing that is demanding your attention now? It’s probably not going to forever. And that’s the beauty of seasons. We have opportunities to serve and be served regardless of where we are and what we’re doing.
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Hey, #ThreeWordWednesday friends, I’m also giving away a copy of Christy Nockel’s new {live!} worship album called “Let It Be Jesus.” I’d love for y’all to enter to win.
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Want more insights? "Peace in the Process: How Adoption Built My Faith & My Family" is available on Amazon. Like me on Facebook, follow me on Twitter, peek into my life on Instagram, follow 152 Insights at Bloglovin', or subscribe to receive "Insights in Your Inbox."