Mission Fields and Waiting
Dear Friends,
I love how the Lord puts together our Daily Treasure writing teams, how each writer brings a different writing style yet each devotional feels like a puzzle piece that helps complete the ultimate message of how the gospel makes a difference in everyday life for the child of God. Julie Harbeson joins us this week and I am so eager for you to see how her devotions are a perfect follow up to last week’s written by Christa Burch.
Julie is a school teacher, and based on what I see on social media, I often wish I could be in her classroom! She brings such love for her students, joy in living, and a sense of humor that makes learning fun. In this week’s devotions, Julie seems to be building on Christa’s lessons about repentance, forgiveness, and the urgency of seeing each day as an opportunity to share Jesus. She gives us a glimpse of how family trips have turned her heart toward the beauty of God’s creation, how our brains are geared toward “renewal” in keeping with Paul’s exhortation in Romans 12:2. Julie reminds us it’s “not about us” when she touches on parenting adult children and encourages us to see our circumstances as our mission field when she shares the following story:
As teachers, we have memories of different students. I remember one student as one of the most difficult students that I had in my teaching career. The student had a lot stacked against her, and school was her only constant. This student was hard to love, but I prayed and prayed for her. Some days, I was able to show love, but other days, my sin nature took over.
One day in particular, I allowed myself to be provoked by this nine-year-old's behavior. As a result, I responded in anger. As soon as the words were out of my mouth, I knew I was wrong. For a moment, I wondered if she was spoken to like this at home, and I knew she didn’t deserve to be treated like that at school — even if she was “pushing my buttons”. Later in the day, I approached the student and told her I was wrong for what I had said, and then I asked for forgiveness. The student looked at me with disbelief. I imagined that in her short nine years, she had not experienced many adults apologizing to her for their wrong actions. She looked at me and said, “Of course I forgive you!” and then initiated a huge hug. By God’s grace, what started in frustration ended in reconciliation and modeling the gospel.
My prayer for this student as she moves forward is that she remembers that forgiveness is a beautiful thing, that it’s okay to acknowledge a mistake, and that reconciliation is possible.
As this child and others move on from my classroom, I hang onto the promise that God is “patient toward THEM, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9)
So what does this mean for you? Who is in YOUR mission field? Is it your family? Your neighbors? Your coworkers? Are you able to share with words? Are you living out the gospel with your actions?
Walk with Julie this week and be encouraged to reconsider how best to reflect Jesus, whether it is in the waiting room, classroom, during a family holiday, or well-planned family trip. Julie brings the gospel right into the middle of everyday life and encourages us to be grateful for the opportunities to remember “it’s not about me, it’s about the glory of God”.
Treasured by Him,
Sharon
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Sharon W. Betters is a mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, pastor’s wife, and cofounder of MARKINC Ministries, where she is the Director of Resource Development. Sharon is the author of several books, including Treasures of Encouragement, Treasures in Darkness, and co-author with Susan Hunt of Aging with Grace. She is the co-host of the Help & Hope podcast and writes Daily Treasure, an online devotional.
Contact Sharon with comments or questions at dailytreasure@markinc.org.
