Listening to Jesus

 

by John C. Westervelt

 

     The red, yellow, and purple flowers you enjoy today were only a seed or bulb being nurtured by the moisture of melting snow in February.  You may remember that the first half of February 2007 was unusually cold and snowy.

On Thursday February 15th, Tulsans awoke to an inch of fresh snow and single digit wind chills.  As I was walking from Asbury’s parking lot just before nine o’clock, I could see a man with a hood covering his head pushing a snow shovel across the area in front of the south doors.  I thought, “How good of him, because in thirty minutes, mothers carrying babies will be following their small children traipsing across this same expanse of concrete.”

     As I approached the door, a red face peered out from under the hood to greet me with “Good Morning.”  I recognized the voice as that of Jeff Polk.

     When Asbury moved to South Mingo, Jeff left an engineering career in industrial heating and cooling to head up Asbury’s maintenance department.  He had worked with the same sophisticated piping, wiring, and controls that are hidden behind all of the walls and ceilings in the new Asbury.

     You might reason that Jeff would have to know a little about a lot of things to manage Asbury’s facilities.  Actually, he has to know a lot about a lot of things, some more complicated than others.  On this frigid day, he needed to know how to handle a snow shovel to insure the safety of the mothers and children.

     Jesus said, “Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant.”

     Jeff listened and acted.

 

Matthew 20:26 NIV

 

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