Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Here, Borrow My Knees

Here, Borrow My Knees
“Here, you can borrow my knees for that.” These were the first words I said to him. And little did I know that those words would unlock the door for unexpected laughter, joy, wisdom and faith.
It was a normal workday. I came in at 8, worked until 12:30, and then went to the deli for my lunch break. Usually I try to snag a seat by the fireplace, but today, the toasty seats were all taken. But, I’m almost positive the Lord planned it that way.
While I unpacked my lunch, and chatted with my best friend on the phone, I noticed a gentleman reaching down to pick something off the floor.
Without even thinking about it, I jumped up, bent down for the penny, and said, “Here, you can borrow my knees for that.”
His response was priceless. “How long can I borrow them?” I chuckled and said, “Whenever you see me, you can borrow my knees.”
I went back to my lunch, finished my phone call and tried to soak up my last few minutes of free time. As I sat there, I watched him. He was not an unfamiliar face to me because he frequented the deli almost daily. He always sat at the same table, chatting with people, reading and drinking coke.
As I got up to leave, I stopped by his table once more and told him to have a nice day. As I reached out to shake his hand, we exchanged names, and he asked me if I had a minute.
In all honesty, I probably was cutting it a little close, but the Holy Spirit told me to make time. So I did. I sat down at his table, which I soon learned is referred to as, “his office”, and heard one of the most wonderful stories of my life.
My newfound friend shared with me a story of how listening to the leading of the Holy Spirit allowed him to be part of helping to purchase Bibles for people in Africa. And how several years later, he met someone who had just come from the same group of people who received and were using the Bibles he helped to purchase.
I had chills running up and down my arms as he shared with tears in his eyes, his love for Jesus. I saw in that short five minutes an unbelievable love and fervor for Jesus, and for serving and being used of Him.
I thank him for sharing that testimony with me, and as I got up to leave “his office”, I was struck once again by the magnitude and all-powerfulness of God.
Out of all the things to arrange, God had seen fit to give me this divine appointment. For that my friends is what that afternoon was –a divine meeting of two people. For in my short time of knowing him, I have been encouraged, inspired and challenged. And I believe more than anything, that is what God wants us to glean from our relationships and interactions with fellow believers.
It has now become a running joke whenever I see him. And the humor grew when, on Sunday, someone at church offered their knees to him, without knowing about our previous encounter. He laughed and laughed when he told me about it on Monday morning.
So far, I have heard about the blessings from following the Holy Spirit, the blessings that come from the hard times, and the blessings that come from solid Christian relationships that stand the test of time.
These are just a few of the lessons that I have taken away from my conversations with him.
So, let me challenge you.
How are you going to use your knees?
I am not necessarily talking about your physical knees, although, in my experience, they are good things to share. I am referring to the things that you have, that God wants to use, but you haven’t even given it a second thought.
My job has taught me more than I ever thought possible about all the ways I can be a blessing. Today, I helped a lady put on her raincoat. Is that part of my job description? No, but it is part of being a servant of God, and loving others more than I love myself… Taking time away from “my to do list” to see the needs of other people, no matter how small. What is small to us might be huge to them.
The mission statement of my job is “Loving God by Serving People”, and I love that so much. I love having a purpose that is greater than paperwork and filing. I love finding joy in peeling back the corners of guest badges so people don’t struggle with taking them off that infuriatingly sticky paper. I love saying “turn left at the fish tank” over and over, because it means someone now knows how to get to their loved one. And I love letting people borrow my knees, so that they don’t hurt or strain themselves.
Why do I love doing this? A resident’s daughter gave me these verses today and I truly believe they express completely and fully why I love sharing my knees.
Colossians 3:23-24 “And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ.”
This is why I share my knees. I want to be a part of something bigger than I am. I want to be so available to Jesus, that when He says, “Share your knees”, I don’t even hesitate. Obeying every impulse of the Holy Spirit…
So, tomorrow when you get up and go to work, or go to school or go to the store – ask yourself this –
Who needs my knees?