Imagine.... you are sitting in church...
A very pleasant gentleman walks up to the podium.
You know....It's time for announcements.
"There are servants needed." He says with a smile. "Please kindly pray and review the list of needs and sign up!"
You see the lists on the screen.
"Audio Visual Ministry"
"Women's Ministry"
"Children's Ministry"
"Missions/Outreach Ministry"
"Ministry to Muslims"
and then finally....
"The Poop Ministry"
Now you might be thinking...What?
I have read a lot of blogs. I have attended church all my life. I have heard of "The Poop Ministry"
Exactly.
I am not talking about septic tanks or doggy bags or even changing cute little infant diapers.
I am talking about caregiving.
As a special needs mom, I have shed many many tears over poop, potty training, potty accidents and the challenges that come with a child who does not know how to "wipe."
It is hard.
So so hard.
I recall one time cleaning Isaac giving him a bath and weeping.
"Why God!? Why is this so hard? Why can't he go to the bathroom on his own? What are you teaching me? What do you want me to learn from this?"
Of course there are the easy answers- patience, compassion, self-less love.
Those are things that people are supposed to say.
If you do have a special needs child or the responsibility of caregiving or you are a nurse and you regularly need to "change" adult diapers....you may not say that.
Poop stinks- it's dirty- it's messy- it's unpleasant...but like the Nike slogan- "You just do it."
The reality is life is messy.
Here on earth there is poop ministry and in one way or another we are all called to it.
Now all of our individual challenges in life are not the same as changing adult diapers or helping Isaac when he has an accident.... but is there really anything that we can say no to when God asks us to serve others?
Serving others can be unpleasant, it can be foul, it can be stinky and it can be hard to handle... we can't do it in our own.
We need the Holy Spirit.
Jesus loves when we serve others.
Remember when The LORD Jesus instructed Peter to "Feed my sheep." John 21:17
"Now that I your LORD and Teacher have washed your feet, you also should wash one another's feet" John 13:14
In fact God deliberately gave us all unique and individual talents and gifts for a reason...We are equipped to serve, but it will not always look pretty. (See Eph 2:10; 1 Corinthians 12)
God gives us His Holy Spirit to enable us to serve Him as He sees fit, not as we see fit.
This gal I follow on Instagram @stopandconsider recently posted something that hit the nail on the head:
"...we can face whatever task at hand, however mundane and obscure it may be with joy. Joy in knowing we were predestined by the love of the Father, to be adopted through the sacrifice of the Son, and given new life through the power of the Holy Spirit"
...however mundane...
....however obscure...
even cleaning poop...
I don't mean to be gross and I pray you see beyond the literal issue of caregiving the potty needs of children with autism, adults with disabilities or even those who can't care for themselves ...
The point is we are not always called to do things that we like and some acts of service we may be uncomfortable with.
We are called to love and serve nonetheless.
May we truly realize that all tasks if done unto the LORD matter. (see Col. 3:23)
Washing dishes matters.
Making meals matters.
Serving someone who wronged you years ago...that matters.
Praying for your enemies matters.
Changing diapers matters.
Helping people with special needs matters.
Writing a thank you note to someone matters.
Not all ministry is flashy and not all ministry has a "name" in the bulletin at church but all things done in love will be rewarded no matter how unseen you may feel...El Roi sees and that matters most.
