Loving People On Purpose

Hmm...it's been awhile...though how can you really be disappointed when the last blog I posted had a picture of me in a Christmas sweater and my friend in a full length red velvet dress? If you're complaining after that, get a life. Take pleasure in the simple things. Really.

While there are numerous things I could write about...went and visited my dad and his side of the family over the holidays, just finishing up Semester One of teaching year three, moved into a new house with a roommate again...all of those fail in comparison to something serious that has actually been on my heart lately.

Relationships. (No. Not a relationship. Just relationships in general. And by the way, wouldn't you be really mad if you were reading about me having a boyfriend via a blog? You should be. That's a lame way to spread the news. Sorry to those of you who have written blogs about dating new people)

The greatest commandment is to love God with all your heart, soul and mind. The second is like it, love your neighbor as yourself.

Love God passionately. Love His people on purpose. Both of these statements seem to be pretty simple to understand, but for some reason they all of the sudden have this new found meaning and urgency to them. Loving God passionately and loving His people on purpose is what I was made for and if I'm not doing that, something is wrong.

Remember how I was talking about how restless I've become as of late? Well over break I received a job offer to work at a charter school in Baltimore. It came with more money, more opportunities, pretty much more everything. I was pretty excited about it when I came home and immediately began telling some people from work about it. Though in the midst of my excitement, there was something that just didn't feel right about it. I didn't understand why I WOULDN'T want to take this job...

So I thought...and prayed....and thought some more about what it was that was holding me back from doing this until something hit me.

My relationships. These people that I thought I just worked with on a daily basis have become something to me that I never expected. They're my friends and I love them...but honestly, I have a lot of friends. My friends at work have become people I love on purpose...a card on a big game day, coffee while talking about a student, a smile and a hug when they're getting divorced. Over the last three years our lives have become this interconnected sort of thing that all of the sudden makes perfect sense. God knew exactly what He was doing when He brought me to this place...I just didn't trust that He did. He knew that these people were going to become a part of me and that I was going to become a part of them and that no amount of money or no grandiose opportunities could take me away from it. Not yet anyways.

It seems that all too often I try to take things into my own control. I get restless. I want to change. Me. Me. Me. Funny how God shakes things up huh? It's like when Peter calls out to Jesus and He commands him to step out of the boat and walk on the water. Everything is going fine for Peter...he's walking on the water, but then he looks away from Jesus and SPLASH!! He falls. That's like me...everything can be going just fine...walking along on the water, and the moment I take my eyes off of Him it all falls apart.

So yeah...a bit random, but not really because I've been challenged to love people on purpose. They're there for a reason. He knows the reason. He'll let me in on it when the time is right.