To say that I don't get a thrill out of hearing, "Miss Reagan's here!!!", would be a lie. On any given Wednesday night during the school year you can find me in the church's gym playing The Blob or disco tag. I'm the Game Girl....and I love it! The yelling, the screaming, the chaos, the pandemonium, are all music to my ears...Fun is a lovely sound!
It all happened quite by accident, really. Last fall we were washed up. Wayne's stroke, too many poor decisions, and a failed church plant had left us broken-hearted. Our plan, that night, was to drop the kiddos off at the AWANA meeting and then skip down the road to McDonald's...You know, kinda like a date? Well, upon registering the children, I overheard the Commander mention that she had no game leader. Games? Pshht, I'm the Queen of Games! I gave Wayne "the look", and he shot me "the look" right back. I ignored his silent plea and immediately volunteered us.
Wednesdays are brutal. It never fails that this day is the busiest of the whole week. 5:45 arrives, at least two kids are AWOL, I haven't fed the little ones and the dog gets loose...This isn't fiction, this is my life. I start to panic, we'll never make it on time. Between kicking myself for volunteering and slapping together some PBJs, the kids assemble themselves into the van. I'm exhausted after dropping the five kids off at four different locations. That's when I hear, "Miss Reagan's here!", and it's all good.
Serving others brings me joy. Ministry is my delight. Children are my calling. Jesus is my passion.
He knew the best medicine for me wasn't a Big Mac and a large fry, it was fifty kids and a closet full of flat kick balls. I am grateful.
And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord who has enabled me, because He counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry. 1 Timothy 1:12
This is your "big kid" version of the Eager Beavers. It's your life-long calling.
ReplyDeleteOne of my thumbs is still numb from when you got me to shove 10,000 cloves into oranges. It was fun. And I'll never do it again! (At least not without you.)
Jess, you just made me laugh out loud! I had forgotten all about that horrible craft!! I think some of the children may have been bleeding by the end of it. I'm pretty sure we didn't do any disco back then!
ReplyDeleteReagan