QUESTION OF THE DAY #14: How do you like to help others?
There are so many good ways to help others. We can physically help them do something. We can lend them our knowledge and experience. We can be a listening ear, a shoulder to cry on, or a timely and loving voice of wisdom. We can help out through organizations or volunteer in countless other ways. Sometimes a "simple" smile or "just" being there is an incredibly effective way to help others.
One way of helping others that seems to have found me is through music. Tomorrow, I'm bringing my guitar to a center for the elderly and singing hymns with them. I enjoy playing in church and for children, too. I've played guitar in the heat of summer for camp and in the dead of winter for living nativity scenes. If I ever travel to a foreign country, I have to bring my guitar!
Notice I didn't say I was good! This is simply something I enjoy doing tremendously, and I hope through music to be able to lift other people up and bring them together. If I can do that, and nothing else, it's been a good day. It really makes it worthwhile for me to put in the hours of practice every day, dreaming about how I will be able to share music with others!
Yet, even before I put these thoughts down, I was reflecting on Colossians 3:16-17, "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him."
This is such a good place to start when it comes to helping others! God is the one who will guide us in His Word. God is the one who will empower us to help, and we are to help others in His name, not for our own purposes. Don't think you have to be like anyone else, either. Rejoice in the gifts you have, and, even more importantly, make bold and thankful use of the opportunities that you've been given today.
What a wonderful way to help people through your guitar playing!! Music is a great way to make people happy and I am sure you do just that :)
ReplyDeleteWhen I lived in California, every tuesday and thursday Id volunteer at the church for soup kitchen day. I should never get a job as a waitress because I would suck at it but I did do a good job serving food at the soup kitchen :) I don't know why I thought of that just now. Oh! because I was impressed also by your guitar playing at your church for the children. We have a acoustic guitar and my 3 year old is already trying to learn to play so I am sure if he were there, he would be loving to watch ya play too :) Well I am rambling... so, thanks again for the wonderful reads!!
That is an awesome memory of serving in a soup kitchen, and not everyone is cut out for that! I'm really happy your 3 yr. old is already getting introduced to the guitar. I have very warm childhood memories of my father playing guitar! Thank you for your great comments, too!
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