..."hands & feet..."

Yesterday as I ran the pups along our wooded road, I had an erie sense I was being watched... I looked up in a tree & saw a pair of hands & feet... hanging on to the upper trunk.

As we took a few more strides down the road I saw a raccoon, 'tree hugging' ... perched up high for a morning nap... had probably just 'stumbled' home after a night out on the town.

It startled me at fist, his head moving ever so slightly .... probably keeping an eye on the pups.  I am not really a fan of raccoons... they have been known to sneak through the dog door & dine on our feline and canine kibble...

Raccoons are interesting beasts... Ornery.... Intelligent really, maybe too smart for their own good. Our Aunt & Uncle have had their share of raccoon problems, they sneak into their screened in porch to eat pet food there too.  Our uncle was so fed up he tried many 'boobi-traps' .... boarding the pet door, they broke through....
My favorite is the use of hot sauce... our uncle sprinkled a whole bottle of hot sauce, brought from Jamaica as a gift, on a bowl of cat food...  In the morning the cat food was gone, & the water dish was full of the evidence of 'hand washing'.... the coons had devoured the seasoned food.... then, I picture them dancing around mouth & paws burning... you know that feeling when you are eating salsa that is hot, but so good you can't stop yourself.....

Yesterday's coon encounter has me thinking about us as humans.... do we just 'hang on' and observe life from afar? Are we ornery, instigating mischief rather than work towards a 'greater good?'  How do we use our hands & feet?  To hold on, for dear life....

We are truly called to be the hands & feet of Jesus.... not watching from afar, or selfishly working for our own self-preservation.  We are called to help others... showing them the love of Jesus.

Last night I attended a banquet with my church small group. There are six of us... two couples, a man whose wife completed our curriculum last year (& she mentors me) and myself as their facilitator (my husband completed the course four years ago).  The banquet was in honor of the Good Samaritan Mission in Gary, Indiana.... Gary, the murder capital of American. They bring men & women off the street into their apartment complex (1 building for men, 1 building for women) .  Pastor Jin & Tammy Watson enroll them in a two year 'Life Change' ministry, teaching them how to live as 'clean' individuals... leaving behind the drugs & booze that they once lived for..... living as a community of believers... in the word .... cohabitation as grateful believers who struggle with individual hang-ups, habits, and hurts.

Two men were awarded for completing the program, living clean Christ-centered lives for two years.  Our small group spent a Saturday afternoon at their offices, building walls.  In five hours we had studded, wired electrical, drywalled, mudded & taped three walls.  It was a physically exhausting day.  The guys even let us ladies run the saw & taught me how to run the saw-z-all, with a huge smile on my face. That day brought me such a feeling of peace... allowing my hands to be the hands of Jesus.

I have to plan & execute a personal project for my small group.  After spending time at the Good Samaritan, hearing stories of their soup kitchen... filled with single mom's and children, my project idea was born. My whole focus for this year's small group has been to allow the Lord to use me as a spiritual leader for my sons.  My project is going to allow us, the boys & I, to be the hands of Jesus.  We are making 'kid kits' for the Good Samaritan to distribute to women participating in their food pantry program.  Each kit will contain a Ziploc of homemade play dough, crayons, and Bible themed activity sheets all packaged in a large Ziploc... to be sent home with the monthly box of food.

These are the simple things my kids take for granted... crayons, left strewn about the car... tossed in the garbage,because there's plenty more where that came from.  Play dough, homemade with love, scented with kool-aid, or vanilla, or almond extract to stimulate the senses and provide NEEDED tactile stimulation....  and Bible activities... my kids have been coloring pictures of David conquering Goliath, or Daniel's victorious exit from the lion's den since they were in diapers.... these children may have never heard of such heroes.....

So friends & family..... my challenge to you is this.... will you be like that ornery raccoon & use your hands to selfishly hang on for dear life? .... will you use your hands to just simply write a check & place it in a collection plate? .....  OR will you use your hands to do God's work & show the love of Jesus? .....