Mercy's Song

My friend Crystal Hahn recently posted a song that she caught her daughter singing in her room. Not a song that anyone else could sing because it was Mercy's song. That's right, this sweet little 5 year was singing her own song and with the quick thinking of her mom, Crystal was able to write down the words to that song. Crystal said that Mercy just kept singing for about 20 minutes while she was coloring. When I read the words, it struck a chord in my heart and then I went on about my day and I honestly didn't think much about it. But it seemed that all throughout the day and the next couple of days three words from Mercy's song kept coming back to me.....No Matter What. I asked Crystal if I could share her song and she of course said yes!

Here are her words:
Mercy's song:
My life is great no matter what
My life is great no matter what happens
My life is great no matter what happens to me
Because no matter what you are with me.
My God is good
Thanks for everything God
You think about us.
Where is my God, He is everywhere
My God, where is He?
He's with you and He's with me
Our hero God
He switches things
He's the only one
My life is great no matter what because God is with me.

Can we say wow?!? From the heart of a 5 year old, there is so much to learn. No Matter What, God is With Us. God is Good. God is Everywhere. He Switches Things. My Life is Great No Matter What BECAUSE GOD IS WITH ME!!!  These words are so true and so purely spoken. If only we as adults could fully grasp the words No Matter What. 

Our faith can become so weary with everything going on around us. Your bank account is about dry, you are suddenly unemployed, you are finding yourself at the edge of divorce, your life as you know it is completely falling apart. How could we possibly have faith when these things are taking over our life, our every ounce of happiness? Because, No Matter What God is With Us. It's not easy to keep faith when trouble is in our view but that's when we have to dig a little deeper and remember that God is Everywhere and He does CARE ABOUT YOU!

Matthew 6:26 says: Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?

Matthew 10:29-31 says: 29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care.[a] 30 And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.

Just remember, God knows every step we take. He knew them before we took them. God cares about you. There is nothing that God will not see us through. No matter how big or small we think our situation is, God is bigger. And sometimes that means He doesn't always see us through the way we want. There may be a little suffering and a little pain, but rest assure JOY will come in the morning. 

Mercy Blair had a song in her heart and I'm so glad her momma decided to share it with us. It's much easier said than done, Have Faith Like a Child. But I pray that I can do just that in my every day life. I hope that Mercy's words captured your heart like they did mine. Hold on to faith and believe that God is for you. 

A Servant Minded New Kid on the Block

When I started working, a couple of weeks ago, I really started thinking about how I wanted my new year at work to play out. In my head, it sounds amazing, drama free, and super fun! In reality, I know that those three things will happen SOME of the time. Let's face it, no job, or at least most jobs, are not amazing all the time, nor are they drama free all the time, nor are they super fun all the time. Some days just plain suck. Someone may yell at you, talk about you, you may make a mistake (big mistake that is gonna have major consequences), you simply just don't feel like getting out of bed that day, your boss is a mean brat and you think your coworkers are just not as smart as you, and if everyone would just do things your way the world would be a better place. Have you ever felt like this? I know I have and I'm sure there are some upcoming days that this will be exactly what I'm thinking and feeling. So I started thinking, how can I change these thoughts? I know these situations are going to arise, but how can I change my mindset? My plan- to do everything with a servant mind.

Like I said, I know not every day is gonna be roses and there are certainly gonna be times when that servant-hearted mind is gonna be hard to find. I'm not even really doing the job I was hoping to be doing but how I'm oh so thankful that I have a job. So, I hope that when I start to get frustrated and find myself on the edge of "jumping off the cliff," I can stop, breath, and remind myself that I'm being a servant and helping someone somehow. Whether I'm answering the phone with an angry parent on the other end, making a bazillion copies, trying to enter things in the computer and the system just won't work, I just gotta remember...... Do it with a servant hearted mind. I actually tried this this past week and you know what? The task at hand didn't seem so bad.

Now, add New Kid on the Block to trying to have a servant hearted mind. No, I'm not new to the school district. I'm not even new to the campus. But, I am new to a lot of the people there because when I was there, they were not. New face, new walls go up. It's not exactly as easy as I thought it would be. Is she nice? What's she like? Who is she? I hope she does things the way you do it. Guess what? It doesn't matter how old you are, being the New Kid on the Block is challenging and scary. Trust me, I know. So, when that new co-worker shows up and starts doing things a little different than the way you do it or a little different than the person before them did it, just remember, you were once a NKOTB and it's not always fun. Be nice, go out of your way to make them feel welcome. You may just find that they're not as bad as you "heard" they were.

We are all gonna have those people we just don't like to work with. And we all will have that job that at some point we do not want to do. Just remember, every person has a story and every job has a reason. A reason we may not like but a reason nonetheless. For some reason, I have this crazy idea that if I can just remember this, my days won't seem so long and my job won't seem so bad on those days.

So, as I begin a new year with mostly new people, I am challenging myself to do everything as a Servant Minded New Kid on the Block.