Sitting Tight
“I tell you the truth, whatever you did for the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” Matthew 25:40
My 18 month old granddaughter, Stella, is sick. It’s not life threatening, she has some kind of rash and is like a dishrag. She just lays around wherever you put her, preferring to be held but not having the energy to even cry if you put her down. It’s very sad.
My daughter called this morning to see if I could stay with Stella while she and her husband went separate ways to accomplish some things on his day off (after a week with a broken down car). I agreed – but reluctantly. You see I have stuff to do, too and today I am preparing for a weekend away. BUT, it was for Stella and she was sick. You don’t want to stay with just anyone when you’re sick. Grandma is the natural first choice.
Well, she came and we sat. She laid on me with her head down on my shoulder for about 45 minutes. She showed a little life when the phone rang (she loves the phone). Her Mom had hurried through her errands because of her sick child and came to get her shortly after that.
Now, here I am several hours later and all my work is done (dinner is even in the oven). I was able to comfort my granddaughter and still accomplish my little agenda for the day.
How often do we miss these small opportunities to help someone else, comfort the sick, relieve someone else’s tension, or just give someone a kind word because we fear the time we’ll have to take to do it? What blessings are we missing as we stick to our agendas and make no opportunity for the Divine appointments God has for us?
I don’t know how big a deal it was for my daughter for me to help today. She has a church full of people willing to help her with her daughter. But I am reminded of God’s blessings when we do what He has for us in a day. There was no effort needed except the effort to get past my own prideful attachment to my own schedule and He blessed me for that.
There is nothing so sweet as holding and cuddling a sick child that you love. I am sorry for Stella that she is sick but I thank my God that He gave me the opportunity to just “sit tight” with her today.