Here I Am

Genesis 46:2

Then God spoke to Israel in the visions of the night, and said, “Jacob, Jacob!”  And he said, “Here I am.”

Exodus 3:4

God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, “Moses, Moses!”  And he said, “Here I am.”

It had been a long hot day of standing in lines to ride the latest roller coaster, sweating and burning in the sun, eating French fries and Dippin’ Dots until we were almost sick.  Then in the afternoon, we gathered our youth group and met for the service.  The reason we had gone on this particular Friday in June was Methodist day at Cedar Point.  In that moment I felt a part of something bigger.  Hundreds of youth from all parts of the state joined together to celebrate what we had in common- our faith in God.  I remember this day among many others at Cedar Point because one thing specifically touched me that day.  A song we sang, that I had not heard before called Here I am Lord by Daniel L Schutte. 

Here I am Lord.  Is it I, Lord?
I have heard you calling in the night.
I will go, Lord, if you lead me.
I will hold your people in my heart.

On this snowy day, I think about those hot summer days when I didn’t worry about spending hours in line for the best new roller coaster.  Today as a working wife and mother, time is much more precious.  It is so easy to get caught up in the day-to-day maintenance of our lives, keeping family obligations, the schedules of our evening activities, as well as work and career goals.  We become like those waiting in a line at Cedar Point slowly plodding along.  We hear the call from God to help, but either think, “Not me Lord, surely there is someone better than me,” or, “God, I will help next week when there’s more time.”
It’s not that we don’t care, or that we don’t want to do more, but it is just something else for which there isn’t enough time.  Helping others because we are called by God sometimes requires us to step out of our comfort zones and re-prioritize our lives.  It helps us grow as Christians when we choose to do it.

Prayer:
Lord, my life sometimes gets in the way of you.  I want to do more, but am blinded by my day-to-day demands and stresses.  Please help me to give those daily problems to you now, and allow me to be more open to hearing your call, so that I may be a servant to your people.  Amen.