Last night at devotions we had open-mic for anyone to share anything on their heart. A lady came forward and talked about her husband. He was this amazing and prestigious doctor at one of the universities in the states. He did a lot of research and was very respected by all who knew and loved him. He died two years ago from cancer. After he died she received this letter acknowledging all that her husband had done on behalf of the medical community. It was nice – something she could proudly hang on her wall.
She said two weeks ago she was teaching some medical students and it hit her in that moment – they have no idea who her husband was. It’s been two years now – they probably don’t know his name or anything he’s done. All that he spent his whole life doing – in 2 years-time was becoming a fading memory.
In the states everything is about time. We have to be on time. We have to hurry through our work because we have another appointment. While our surgery team is here – time isn’t as crucial to our day in-day out like it is in the states. Every patient is prayed for. We don’t rush through our talks about Christ. Sometimes our doctors have to wait for our evangelical team to finish talking to the patient before they can even begin to make a diagnosis. It was during this waiting period that the surgeon felt compelled to share with us that night at devotions. Winning a patient to Christ seems like such a better way to spend our time than to rush through our normal daily tasks and accomplish little for the Kingdom.
I have learned over the years that none of us are irreplaceable. The hours we spend and devote to our jobs will always be outmatched by someone who can do it better, faster, or easier than what we’re doing it. Sometimes we get into this self-preservation mode and we hold onto things so tightly and miss out on the bigger picture that God has for us. We can’t grab His hand and walk with Him when our fists are closed holding onto what we think is more important.
There have been many changes here in the mission as we’ve grown so much. Years ago – maybe even last year – you would never hear me say I need help. Nope. I can do it. Whatever it is – I can do it. The tighter I held on – the more I missed out . I told Janeil the other day that I know of someone who I believe would be an amazing asset and take some stress off of me. I know of someone who has a passion for helping groups plan their activities in Haiti better than what I can do. What can we do to bring them on board and how fast can we do it?
There’s probably not many people out there who tell their boss – hey – can you hire someone to do my job because I believe they’ll do it better!! But just think if we did that. That means the best person would be doing every job out there. How much easier would that be on everyone if you never had to worry about incompetence! Every meal would be the best meal you ate, the pharmacist would ask you how he could help you save money on prescriptions, and we’d never be on hold waiting for the customer service representative! LOL! If only!
But because we’re trying to stay employed – we don’t look for the person that can help us. We hold on tightly. I don’t want my legacy to be – “That Jody – I tell you – She would answer your email within 5 minutes of you writing it. She could make a group schedule in her sleep. She always got the best prices for plane tickets even if it took her until 2am!”
I want my legacy to be – “That Jody – her passion was the people. Rarely did you not see her engaging in those around her. Every morning at 7am you saw her with her Bible. She sure knew how to balance her time and family. She was always pouring herself into the people around her. She didn’t miss a single moment of her children’s lives”.
Those things that I wish people would say – COULD NOT say all that today if I left this world tomorrow. I haven’t seen my twins in the last two days because of all the work we have. Five out of the last 9 days – I have missed tucking my babies to sleep.
What is my legacy going to be? We are studying the book of Daniel right now in our women’s Bible study. It talks about how Babylon isn’t just a city in the Bible – it’s a way of life. Babylon is a mental/cultural way of life. It represents making your way to the top, being younger, having many possessions and falling into the temptations of this world. We live in Babylon right now. The question is – do we live in secret captivity? What is satan telling us that we are believing? He is telling me that my work is more important than my family. He is telling me that I don’t have time to read my Bible because after all – I’m working for the mission. My work is my ministry right? So it’s okay if I don’t spend daily time with God because I’m working for Him.
What is satan telling you that is allowing you to live in this safe/secret captivity? What will you do to stop it? What type of legacy will you leave? If you left us tomorrow what would people say? Do you know that you might not actually wake-up tomorrow? It happens every day to someone….
Legacy
I don’t mind if you’ve got something nice to say about me
And I enjoy an accolade like the rest
You could take my picture and hang it in a gallery
Of all who’s who and so-n-so’s that used to be the best
At such’n’such … it wouldn’t matter much
I won’t lie, it feels alright to see your name in lights
We all need an ‘Atta boy’ or ‘Atta girl’
But in the end I’d like to hang my hat on more besides
The temporary trappings of this world
I want to leave a legacy
How will they remember me?
Did I choose to love? Did I point to You enough
To make a mark on things?
I want to leave an offering
A child of mercy and grace who
blessed your name unapologetically
And leave that kind of legacy
I don’t have to look too far or too long awhile
To make a lengthly list of all that I enjoy
It’s an accumulating trinket and a treasure pile
Where moth and rust, thieves and such will soon enough destroy
Not well traveled, not well read, not well-to-do or well bred
Just want to hear instead, “Well Done” good and faithful one…