Sent

This morning I was sent.  

Sent by my husband to pay bills. 

 I left the house with a plan.  First to the power company, then to the cell phone office, then to the water company, and then to the post office.  All four offices with-in a rectangular radius of two blocks from one another.  The furthest being no more than five blocks from my house.  So I figured I could get all these errands done in an hour or less traveling by foot.

When I arrived at the power office, I walked in, went straight up to the counter and paid the bill.  All within a matter of ten minutes after leaving the house.  As I stepped out of the power office and glanced down the street toward the water office, I saw a long line out front.  I thought I’d walk by and check it out, and determine whether or not I had time to wait.  

As I crossed the street, I bumped into one of the ladies from the church we attend.  We greeted with a hug and how are yous.  Of course, she wanted to know what I was out doing.  (I love that the ladies of the church feel responsible for my safety and whereabouts!)  I told her I was paying bills.  She told me she was doing the same.  And that she had just left the water company where she had waited in line for an hour.  Oh my!  We said our good-byes and God bless yous and went on our separate ways. 

As I walked passed the water office and got a closer look at the line, I decided to travel to the cell phone office first with hopes that the water line would be shorter upon my return.  I said hello to a girl from church who was waiting patiently for her mom who was waiting in line to pay her bill.

At the phone office I walked right in, straight to the counter, and paid my bill in a matter of a few minutes.  As I stepped out of the cell phone office, I decided to cross through the park and visit a friend who owns the ice cream store and buy some water from her to make my wait at the water office a little more pleasant.

 In the ice cream store, I chatted with my friend for a few minutes talking about our need for more exercise and the battle we face with getting up early to walk at the stadium or staying out late for the community running group on Tuesdays and Fridays.  We gave each other encouragement to keep pressing forward and she complimented me on how my Spanish is continuing to improve.  We exchanged our good-byes and take cares and I was ready to face the long line at the water company.

This time, the line looked to be the same distance.  I thought about returning a different day, but ultimately decided it would be nice to stand in line for a few minutes to let my mind wander a little. 

Fortunately, I was prepared with my cold bottle of water and my umbrella that I keep in my purse.  I never know when I will need it.  This time of year, it’s not for the rain, but to block the hot, scorching sun.  

The line seemed to move at a steady pace.  But when I reached a spot where I could see the door, I noticed that there were some people who walked up, walked right past the line and somehow made it inside.  The more people I saw do this, the more frustrated I became.

I started to notice that they were all older people.  Grandparent material.  Some were great-great-grandparent material.  

Finally I reached the door, but an old man edged his way in front of me.  Who did he think he was?  I tried to block him, but he was persistent and got in front of me anyway.

As I made it into the five-times-as-long line inside, I saw that the man who pushed past me went straight up to the counter, by-passing the line all together.  I just shook my head and figured it’s just one of those things I have to let go.

As I waited and waited and waited in the line, I noticed this happening again and again.  Older people were being ushered in past the line all together and delivered straight to the counter by the security guards.  No one in the line seemed aggravated by this.  I finally realized that this was their system of hospitality.  

Each of these people that were ushered past the line were considerably old.  Like 80s or 90s.  (I know, that’s still young for many people.)  But when I started thinking about the distance these people may have walked to come into the water office, I didn’t want them to have to stand in the hot sun either.  They looked incredibly frail.  All with very weathered, dark, leathery skin that represented the many years of hard physical labor they had put in caring for their families, just managing to scrape by. 

As I had time to stand by and watch the hospitality of the security guards, I began to appreciate their kindness towards and respect for these elderly people.  And I also had time to appreciate that they were still out and about taking care of business, despite their obvious sum of years.

I realized that it was God who nudged me to take the time to wait in the line this morning.  Not because I didn’t have other things to take care of, but because He had a lesson for me there.

You see, I believe that being sent has a lot less to do with the abilities I have as it does with the lessons God has for me to learn.  He has sent me out to serve Him, not because He thinks I already know everything I need to know to get the job done.  Not because He thinks I am already equipped with all the tools I need to accomplish the work He has for me.  But because He knows that it is in the willingness to go and be open to the lessons that He can teach me, empower me, and equip me to do the work that He has for me.  

I have been sent to live with a people that once seemed foreign to me.  To learn from them.  To build relationships with them.  And to do Kingdom work with them.  So that “them” gradually becomes “we.”  Not because of anything I have done or will do, but because of EVERYTHING He HAS done and WILL do!

The whole act of being sent starts with a simple willingness to go.  To be open to the unknown that lies ahead.  The curves and stops along the way are often the most beautiful parts.  And the unexpected and at times mundane “long-line experiences” are often the tools God gives us to equip us for His work.

Once I finally arrived back home (two hours after leaving) I realized that I had accomplished what I had set out to do – which was to pay the bills my husband sent me to pay.  I also realized that wasn’t the real reason I was sent.  I was sent out this morning to greet and hug a sweet sister in Christ on the street.  I was sent out this morning to catch up with a friend in the ice cream shop.  And I was sent out this morning to see the beauty of Salvadoran culture and the way respect for elders is lived out…not just talked about.  I returned home different than I left.  Tired and hot from the journey, but full and renewed from the lessons.

I pray that God continues to keep me open to His unexpected teachings along this journey.  And that I don’t rush through things, while missing out on the lessons that await me in the long-line moments.