Wow, I just want to start off by saying that today was BEAUTIFUL! The sun was shining, there was just a slight but wonderful breeze, and I could finally wear a tanktop again! Days like this definitely make up for gloomy days that we too often see. The flowers are in full bloom on campus, and as I was driving home from work, I noticed that the grass along the river is finally starting to turn green :) Spring is so wonderful, for so many reasons! 1) it means we are finally ending winter and summer is on the way! 2) everything is exceptionally beautiful, and 3) Easter happens in spring, which is a great segue into what God has shown me today.
This week, HIS is in the middle of "Daffodil Week," which is our big philanthropy this semester. Yesterday, we got to bless others by eating Mexican food at Red Cactus, and a portion of the proceeds went to cancer research. Today at meeting, we received daffodils that we bought for each other a couple weeks ago, and those proceeds also go to cancer research... and tomorrow is Menchie's day! Yay frozen yogurt for a good cause! So, this is a week of giving in HIS so that we can help people that we know are suffering. But a lot of times, we forget how important it is to help others... none of us does it enough! I do community service to put it on my resume and fulfill my two required philanthropy hours each semester. It's really sad. I know better than that, but I keep convincing myself that I am too busy for extra community service. You know what's funny about that sentence? There were 3 references to ME. My little, Victoria, spoke at meeting tonight about bearing each other's burdens. Paul commands us as Christians to bear each others burdens... and I am failing to do that by not doing community service. But community service alone does not fulfill the role of "bearer of burdens." Any little thing to help someone out, to help them get through their day, can help lighten their load. I frequently get beautiful little messages from Bry that just say "I hope you have a good day!" or "Good luck on your test!". I normally just smile and think how sweet she is, but now I know that she was doing her job as a Christian by making my life a little bit easier by encouraging me. And Michael.... he is the BEST at encouragement! When I have too much homework to do and I say that I'm too busy to hang out, he still comes over and just sits next to me... just to be there. The things he says to me just constantly remind me that he is there not only as my boyfriend, but as a brother in Christ. Another important point that Victoria made is that, in order to begin carrying someone else's burdens, you also need to open yourself up and let others carry YOUR burdens. What's kind of funny is that she looked straight at me when she said it. She knows me too well. I only ask for help if I have tried everything I could try and exhausted all my resources. Even when I am broke, I do not ask my parents for money. When I need a day off from work to just have some alone time, I do not ask my boss for it. I have so many burdens, but this world has led us to believe that asking for help is a sign of weakness and failure. But it's not! It is a way of saying, "I need you to help me right now, and as a sister in Christ, I will help you when you need it."
So why should we carry each others burdens? In thinking about the wonderful weather and how Easter is coming up.... I thought, Jesus carried ALL of our burdens and sins on his shoulders. I could do ALL the community service in the world, and it won't even compare to the burden that Christ carried for me. How awesome is that? Therefore, we need to carry others' burdens not to look good on a resume or just to fulfill philanthropy requirements, but to make it a part of our lives in our futile attempts to imitate Christ. Wow, isn't God awesome?
That's it for today... it's time to wrap up the night. Goodnight all... and for future reference, if you have some burdens that you need someone to bear, just let me know :)