Do you remember learning how to tie your shoes? Me neither. Yet, I can do it without a thought, totally on autopilot. That said, I vaguely remember my kids learning and I’m watching one of my grandchildren learn now. There are steps. They have to learn the steps. They have to practice the steps. Yes, they even have to fail a few times in their execution of the steps, but rare is the person who never learns to tie his shoes, because there are executable steps to learn, practice, and perfect.
What if I told you that blessing someone each day was as easy as tying your shoes? It really is! PJ has already challenged us on more than one occasion to ask God to show us one person we can bless each day. Let me break it down into five steps we can learn, practice, and, yes, perfect.
- Add to your morning and/or evening prayer list a line something like, “Lord, please help me to see one person who needs a touch from Your hand, through me, today.” (Luke 15:1-7)
- Add five minutes of margin to your day. Get up earlier, leave earlier, get done earlier. I don’t know what you might need to do to feel less rushed, but many of us blow past opportunities because we are in a hurry!
- Equip yourself. Make sure you have your One Million Stories card in your wallet OR your WOGF postcard invitation in your purse OR your Living Water Gospel of John in your backpack. Be ready to follow up.
- BELIEVE God is going to do His part.
- Just ask the question, “How can I pray for you?” as God lays it on your heart. (People of all backgrounds are genuinely open to this question!)
- Beginner – jot down a request.
- Intermediate – quietly bow right there.
- Advanced – pull him/her aside, put hand on shoulder, pray intercessorially, invite him/her to call or come by church.
Yes, this is WAY more detail than you need, but just like tying your shoes, if you learn the steps and practice the steps, it becomes second nature. If instead we simply acknowledge from a distance that this is something – like jogging – we could do, but never actually do…well, at minimum, we miss the blessing.
So at minimum, pray with me about this challenge!
Yours,
Pastor Scott
Grace Notes 