Sweet Tea and Popsicles

I was putting sand in the sandbox outside and the neighbor girl who is 12 came over to play with my daughter.  I used to think it was a bit odd that she would come over and ask to play with my girly (who is 5), but after a while, with some close supervision, I realized that when you are a girl and bored you will hang out with anyone and that it is ok. 

As I was making sweet tea for her, my mind drifted to the wonderful time I had with my bible study ladies that morning.  The topic was Nehemiah’s rebuilding of the wall around Jerusalem and how it relates to our own walls that need to be rebuilt.  The idea of our ministry needing to start in our own areas of influence and work its way out became one of the themes we discussed.

 I have a “show me” friend in this group who is always asking “What does this look like?”  This was what I was thinking over when a stray thought came to me, well, I say stray but I think I mean “direct to my heart” thought.   Popsicles.  Oh, Lord, not the popsicles again. 

So now I have to digress for a moment to bring you up to speed in my popsicle dilemma.  My children are so good at giving our popsicles to the neighbor kids.  In fact they will just hand them out to anyone who asks for one.  It was becoming an everyday occurrence that just got to me one day when I went out to the garage and saw 12 children eating popsicles and not one of them were mine.  I felt like my children and I were being taken advantage of.

I really struggled with this one as I really felt like the Lord was calling me to minister to the children in the neighborhood and their parents in a real and practical way.  After much thought I decided that I hadn’t a clue as to what to do.  I like the kids being around the house so that I can find them when I need them, but I also want to be a blessing to those kids who live around me.  So if I had to give out popsicles then I was all for it, until it became a bit over whelming the sheer amount I was giving out.

  The issue for me was how to minister to the neighbors but not be taken advantage of or allow my children to be. It was also, how can I spread the gospel to the children and make it a “fruitful” act.

Back to the moment of sweet tea.  I was pouring the sweet tea for my dear daughter and her friend that is when it hit me.  The issue at hand was  not being taken advantage of or even whether or not I speak the Gospel to these children.  The issue is that I am to love these children with the Love of God.  The words I speak to them need to be seasoned with grace.  The giving of popsicles needs to be one of kindness. 

God has given me a little piece of wall to work on right here on my little corner lot and it is to show my children and those around us who Jesus is by how I interact with them.  It means that I need to be outside more often and put aside some of my personal desires, but I am positive that checking email, catching up on a show or even cleaning up my house is nothing compared to the seeds that will be planted by my simply being there with the children. 

So, now I will be the popsicle house, the sprinkler house, the cry if you had a bad day house, the water balloon, sandbox or whatever you need this house to be house.  I am not having a Bible study every Wednesday on my lawn, I may at some point who knows.  I do know that today, I am handing out popsicles and sweet tea.

So, here is my challenge to you.  What practical ministry (or way to show God’s love) is staring at you right now.  You know, the one that you pass every day and feel a faint tug that you should do something purposeful about.  What are you going to do about it?