Scripture Reading
Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.
Colossians 4:5-6
Thought of the Day
I have a great job. I have been a youth director for over thirty-two years. It is a great job because I get to work with youth whom I love, and I get to wear fishing shirts and shorts more that any man my age, other than an old hippie living in a hut on a beach somewhere. Who knows? There might be a hut on a beach with my name on it someday. (If that happens, it will certainly be a test to see how much my sweet wife really loves me.)
Anyway, I wear a lot of shorts. (That sounds like I wear multiple pairs at a time.) Let me change that to “I wear shorts a lot.” Now I do not wear them to worship on Sundays, and I normally wear jeans on Mondays because we have staff chapel and lunch. That all stopped the middle of March because of the stupid virus. So, I think I have worn jeans only once or twice since then. Our worship on Sundays is streamed online. No Monday chapel or lunch either. I have also not had a haircut in all of 2020. Since it is already September, I think I am going to try to not get one all year. (I might be getting closer and closer to that hut on the beach.)
So why do I think you care about the number of times I have worn a pair of jeans in the past six months or so? Let me tell you. There is a great little story about Levi Strauss. Like many others, Levi went to California during the gold rush to make his fortune. However, old Levi had a different plan than to pan for gold. He showed up with a load of heavy canvas fabric to make tents and wagon covers. Once he got there a miner saw what he had and said, “You should have brought pants.” It seemed that the workers were having a hard time finding pants that would strong enough to hold up during the hard work of mining. Strauss immediately made the man a pair of pants and “struck gold.” He embraced the opportunity.
During this pandemic we have all missed out on a lot of opportunities. We could all make a list. However, we also have had some opportunities arise that we might never had in our lives. We have had to learn to communicate and stay in touch with family and friends in some new ways. We have been able to help those who need a little loving by donating food, money, and our time. We have been able to appreciate little opportunities that each day brings. So, I challenge you to embrace new opportunities!
Prayer
Lord, put upon my heart to find opportunities to serve and love others. Amen.