March 2nd (2.23.15), Monday, First Week of Lent

Leviticus 19: 1-2, 11-18, Psalm 19: 8, 9, 10, 15, Matthew 25: 31-46

God asks us to love Him with all our heart and our neighbor as we love ourselves. While I try to be an obedient follower, sometimes I feel like a pretender. Do my actions reflect what God wants me to do? Or, is it all about me? Do I even stop and ask myself that question?

I am on my way home from Louisiana where I participated in a Habitat for Humanity building project. During the week we prayed daily and worked hard. I worked with different people everyday and got to know people I probably would not have acknowledged in the grocery store. I met the new homeowners and their families. I loved listening to and hearing where people come from, what they left behind and how their faith fits into their lives. I was told that I was a blessing, I learned the steps of building a house and I saw God everyday. I saw him in the people around me. I felt him in my heart. There was no pretending. The trip was a gift. It will be a reminder of why God asks us to love our neighbor as we do ourselves.

I read the readings I was assigned on the way down to Louisiana and struggled with what I would say in my reflection. On the way home, I prayed first, reread my readings and received the words.

While one trip will not change everything and a house is not built in one week, my heart has been changed forever. I brought a tool belt filled with tools, but God showed me how to use those tools for His goodness. The walls we carried and secured showed me that it’s impossible to do His goodness on my own. And, the roof that I helped shingle reminds me that God will protect me when I give freely of myself to others.

Jackie Holcomb, married 25 years to Bryan, mother to Andrew and Erik