WOW.
As would be my normal response, I just kind of stared at him. Now I hope he didn't think I was being rude, and I don't think that he thought that, but he continued talking about how God wanted me to know that my time was coming and that I was not forgotten.
WELL DANG.
Apparently my thoughts about Guatemala and wishing my time would come faster and all of my questions and annoyances and pleadings were visible to someone elses Spirit. So I got to thinking about Jesus and how His timing is always perfect, even when I try to think otherwise. And I also thought about all of the other people in the world who sometimes (like me) feel forgotten, feel left out, feel as if they are down for the count. Some may not even realize they feel that way. Like I wasn't aware today, maybe you didn't even know that you had been living like you had been forgotten. My friends, you are not forgotten. Let me be the voice of truth to you, as this kind, wonderful man was to me today. You are not forgotten. You have worth. You have meaning. You are one of a kind and God will use you. You were never meant to be alone or meant to feel worthless or forgotten.
As I'm typing this, several things come to mind. First off, my desire to express your invaluable, incomparable worth to you. Second, the scene from Lilo and Stitch where Stitch proclaims, "Ohana means family and family means nobody gets left behind or forgotten." As children of God, as human beings, we are family and simply because we are family, we ought to not feel forgotten. Nonetheless, times will come when we don't feel at the top of our game, or we won't feel like we are a part of something, BUT you are. You are part of something far larger than you could ever imagine. And in that large thing that you cannot imagine, you have worth, you have value, you have a specific place that is of utmost importance. Paul, in Corinthians 12, writes;
The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.
So stop being self defeating.
Stop believing lies.
We need you.
We need each other.
We need your giftings.
You are not forgotten.
not by me. and most importantly. not by God.
Which reminds me of one more thing. One of my favorite stories, about two pigs, is called Sidney and Norman. The two pigs struggle, one with pride, the other with self-defeat and self-esteem issues. Then they encounter God and He changes their lives. The proud pig finds that God is sad with the way he looks down on the other pigs, while the self-defeating pig finds that God's love for him isn't dependent on his abilities or performance. I think we can learn a lot from a tale of two pigs and their encounter with God. Because the story ends (sorry if you haven't read it.... spoiler alert) with Sidney, the self-defeating pig, reminding himself of what God told him the day they met; First of all, I love you. Secondly, I love you. Thirdly, I love you. That is all.
If you are feeling left alone, forgotten, prone to self-defeat, or if you are feeling proud and mighty and on top of the world, or even if you are feeling perfectly fine, heres a reminder
I love you. I LOVE you. I love YOU.
-love God.
You are not alone. You are never alone and you are not forgotten. Your time is coming.
Hold on. Hang in there.
Read this book. If you like stories. Even if you don't. It's wonderful. Even for adults.
