"To give unselfishly,
To love the least of these,
Jesus, I'm learning how to live with open hands."
Lyrics by Matt Papa
Today I went to a funeral for the pastor of the church I grew up at. He had been suffering from cancer for a while now, and over the weekend he "finished the race" peacefully with his family at his side. It was a lovely service; a celebration, rather, of this man's life and the impact he had on his friends, family and church body. Something that was said during the service today really rang true to me and resonated deep into my bones. It was said that one of Dr. McKinney's life philosophies was to simply live with open hands.
All of a sudden something clicked in me, "That's it! I want that life philosophy too!" It is an idea that has been stirring in me for some time, but it has just never been given a specific name. To be known not by how much success I have or how much money I make, but rather with how much I gave and how much I loved others. This is something that I want carved in my tombstone and said about me when I'm gone. That I gave unselfishly. And that I loved the least of these.
Currently, I'm seeing this attitude first hand. I'm in a Bible study with some women who absolutely humble me with their ability to life out this "open handed" philosophy. They truly give their time, money, things, and talents freely and without expecting anything in return. I am so honored to be a part of a group of wonderful wives and mothers. I think this is how God intended "church" to be: a group of believers who happily meet each others' needs and the needs of the community around them.
This thought has been heavy on my heart tonight, so I thought I'd share.
3 comments:
What a beautiful thought. Thanks for sharing.
This really fits with some discussions and thoughts that I've had this week, too. I met with a lady from my lifegroup today and I was thinking how this is truly being the church, because she spoke encouragement into my life and I know she did it intentionally. Recently, I have met a lot of wonderful women who are like role-models as women of faith and I think "I know they are good women because of their love and concern and I want to be like them." Awesome. Thanks for sharing this.
What a great post! I feel encouraged.
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