Estimated reading time: 3 minute(s)

I really do enjoy what I do. I love to put together sets of music that will lead people’s hearts and minds to the love of their Father. I love to create things with words, with graphics, and then to translate to a page on the internet viewable by you. I love all of that.

But none of that matters one bit when my family needs me. None.

This week, I am able to have an office at the church we are serving with this weekend. There is an open room, and a connection to the internet, so… I am set. I have not been able to have much time away from the family (or our host family) where I can just concentrate on work. Partly because of our location, and partly because Jen has been out of commission for quite sometime, so I have had double and triple duty.

Well, today I was able to get away and hopefully get some work done, as Jen has been feeling much better, and, I am just across the street (that helps too!) 🙂 I arranged with Jen that when she was ready to go do some errands we need to do, that she should come and get me. Well, when Jen came to get me, she looked and sounded fried.

She said she did not need any help, and she was just going to go back and lay everyone down for a nap, so… I let her go.

But, I know how that goes.. 🙂

So I wrapped up what I was doing, and headed over, and sure enough, all was not going as planned. So, I helped Kirstie go to sleep, and hopefully relieved Jen a bit.

I need to work. I am responsible to lots of people. Including my family, as “the breadwinner”. But, in most instances… I don’t really care about bread, as I know that is REALLY my Father’s job. He gives us “our daily bread”. Still, the tension between caring for my family and working to provide for them is … interesting.

But when it comes down to it, I could not sit over here and just “hope” all was well across the way. The most important thing to me is my family. I love them more than I can say. Especially Jen. So all of this other stuff that I enjoy so much, pales in comparison to my relationship with them.

And I think that’s the way it should be. I think that we were made for relationship, not tasks. Those words may have just hurt you if you prefer task-oriented life style. But, I must say, though tasks are necessary, they are definitely secondary to relationships.

I think Jesus showed this with the Mary and Martha episode, where Mary just wanted to know Jesus more and Martha wanted to serve him more. “Mary has chosen what is better,” Jesus said. And we say all the time that we were created for relationship with God.

It can be so hard to forget. But I hope today you get a chance to think about the folks God has put in your life. And as you think about them, that you get a chance to spend some time with them. And as you do that, you would be reminded powerfully what really matters in life. Really.