Savoring

“Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.” Philippians 2:4

Yesterday was a “gift” to me! It was a beautiful, mild, sunny day. I sat in the sunshine until it was just too hot for me. Imagine—too hot in the midst of our cold winter! I was so grateful for the break in our rainy, windy, cold days. I kept thanking the Lord all day for the sunshine as I savored it. It did my heart good.

Through the years we have been blessed to work with some wonderful people—to be part of some inspiring groups and live in interesting places. One of the things we’ve learned is to “savor” each one of those—just as I savored the sunshine yesterday. You never know when things will change, people move on, or even God moving us on.

We lived in Holland for 18 years. I thought we would continue living there for many, many years. And suddenly, everything changed and we were leaving. We loved living there, loved the Dutch culture and people. We felt very much at home and wanted to stay. But God was leading a different way. I’m so glad that we had “savored” every day there. The years in Holland went with us in our hearts.

Our years in Kabul, Afghanistan were very different. It was not an easy place to live! So many challenges. And yet, I loved living there and “savored” all the rich experiences. We were there when the king was overthrown—an important moment in the history of the country. We were there when the Christian church (for foreigners) was torn down—a sad and historic day. The government had heard there was an “underground church”, so they tore the building down and dug deep into the ground looking for that church. I have a piece of the marble floor of the church. Every time I look at it, it reminds me to pray for that country that is going through such hard times—especially the women and children.

If I counted right, we have lived in 13 different places, and worked with hundreds and hundreds of wonderful people. Not everything was easy and smooth going, but, none the less, we savored each place, each relationship, each person. I feel so blessed to have had the life we’ve had… “savoring” each minute.

I tend to save “special” cards/notes from people. Recently I thought I should clean out some of them. As I read through them, it took me back through the years—to things that had happened and to wonderful people. It was a trip down memory lane of “savoring” people, places, and things God had done! I couldn’t throw any of those precious mementos away. All I could do was thank the Lord for how He’s led us all our years.

Our greatest wealth is not measured in terms of riches but relationships. We’ve never had a lot of money, but we are exceedingly rich in the gift of people in our lives.

Father, teach us to savor the people and places You have put in our lives. You have a good purpose for it all. Amen.