Opportunity
Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourself. Romans 12:10
Five minutes. I have five minutes today to write about the word opportunity after reading the previous verse. When I try to reconcile that with the fact that I have decided to blog about motherhood from the viewpoint of someone who has survived to reach the empty nest years, there is a part of me that still remembers the early years and thinks, “seriously, God, You want me to blog about humility to young mothers who spend their days pouring themselves into meeting the needs of their kids?” But the more I reflected on the selfless acts required of motherhood – sleepless nights and never-ending chores – I am reminded that the attitude with which I conducted myself was as important to my kids as the actions. When I was exhausted from lack of sleep, how did I treat the cashier at the grocery store? When I was running late because of traffic, what was my attitude toward the other drivers? Every day I had opportunities to teach my kids about God’s love by the way I modeled it – toward them and toward the people around us. As I begin my day today, I am reminded that I still have a new day full of opportunities to show that love to the people around me. What will I do with those opportunities? No matter what stage of life we find ourselves in today, we have opportunities – God-given opportunities. Gifts.
Lord, help me to be aware of the opportunities you provide me. Give me a spirit of humility that others will see You, learn about Your love, and receive your blessings.
Robin Kelley
I am just an ordinary middle-aged woman striving to make a difference one word at a time. . . no matter what hat I am wearing at the time.
2 Comments
Jamie H
Motherhood has taught me more about humility than anything else. In fact, I can’t even imagine something coming close to teaching me about humility like parenting and children have. The journey is maybe a trillion times harder than I imagined it would be.
And let me say, I sure don’t always treat the cashiers and others so nicely when I have been grumpy from a long day with kids… but it is the times that I don’t do as I could or should that God teaches and presses me more into humility for another time. I still have much to learn. And maybe no one else can see the work He’s done, but that’s okay by me, because He is working. I’ll have to be watchful of opportunities today.
Robin Kelley
Jamie, I think our children learn from watching us grow. How frustrating would that be – even though we often expect it of ourselves – if we were always perfect in front our kids and did not take advantage of those opportunities to model for them the process of learning and growing that you are talking about. Our walk with God is often filled with “growing pains”, and it is healthy for our kids to know we go through them, too. But it is not healthy for them to think we think we are perfect or that we expect them to be.
Thanks for your comments, Jamie. I think you are an amazing mother. I want you to know I prayed for you today – as a mother, as a wife, and as a writer. May God bless you richly in 2013!