the power of serving others

Saturday was Cross Culture.

I have to admit, if you would have asked me at 6:30am if I was excited for the day, I honestly would have had to say no. You know the usual excuses... I wanted to sleep in, the weather looked gloomy, or I thought there was something else I could have been doing; purely selfish reasons.

Let's just say I have learnt long ago that I should never listen to myself during the first 30-45mins after I first get up (I am a pretty grumpy morning person).

As soon as I got myself going, putting porridge and some milk inside my belly, I started to feel a little more chipper and optamistic about the day. Its suprising what a good bowl of oatmeal can do for you. "There is no such thing as a bad meal when you eat some oatmeal!" Okay... enough about oatmeal, more about Cross Culture.

Cross Culture was such a blessed and wonderful day. It went so smoothly. I would just like to take a moment to thank everyone who made it possible, you are all incredible.

I wrote a little while ago that Bono once said, "Stop asking God to bless what you are doing. Get involved in what God is doing, because it's already blessed." It was evident that Cross Culture is what God is doing.

Matt B and I had the priviledge of being the leaders of the group that went down to Helping Hands. The people there have such BIG hearts! It is a used clothing store run completely by volunteers and is supported by donations only. All the clothes there are free and every Friday they go out and hand out hygene packages to the people on the streets. It was so neat just to have convorsations with these wonderful people and see the passion for serving shining through everything they said and did. It made me think "I want that."

I was caught off guard by one of the questions that Helen (the lady who runs Helping Hands) asked. She looked me in the eyes and said, "Katrina, what drives you heart for God? What makes you feel close to God, what makes your heart feel fulfilled?"

I guess the reason why that question caught me off guard so much was because I thought we were at that time in the convorsation where she would ask the typical, "What are you going to school for?" or "What do you want to become?" And I would answer with the typical, "I am going to school to become an elementary teacher. I can't wait, it's been my dream for quite awhile."

The question she asked me was direct, it was in the present. Not what do you want to become, but who ARE you? It wasn't easy to answer and I don't think I did myself justice with the answer I gave her, "I like to help people." Well said Katrina, well said. If I had a second chance I would hope I could come up with a slightly better phrased answer.

Making a difference drives my heart. Relating to people, seeing someone smile, listening to someone share themselves, being there, doing the little things, giving, serving, being needed... that is what makes my heart feel closest to God, that's what makes me tick.

There is such power found in serving others. I truly think that God did not intend us to be selfish beings who only look out for the "number one." Because when I looked around at the faces of everyone involved with Cross Culture I saw joy, I saw love, I felt God.

Donald Miller (great author of Blue Like Jazz) pretty much sums it up, "There is a kind of evolution that happens to the people who have learnt the beautiful truth that other people exist, and that life can be found in serving them."

I'm going to pull a Helen... "What drives your heart? What makes you feel closest to God?"
Answer those questions and I'll bet that you will start to understand who you actually ARE.

I know it got me started...