I have to admit that I ?m still somewhat sore from our trip to Louisiana. While I know what it means to put in a full day of physical labor, my knowledge is more anecdotal, as my daily work involves me being a ?mouse jockey. ? In all honesty, I was out of my league as we worked with IDES to build houses for people who lost everything to hurricane Katrina in 2005. I volunteered to work on the drywall crew, but when we arrived to find a shell waiting to be insulated and to have drywall installed, I thought I had made a mistake.
Fortunately, our crew included my brother John and Eric Kopy, who both have professional experience in building trades. Without them leading, teaching, and working side-by-side with us amateurs, we might have set IDES back a week or more in their schedule. I needed their support and guidance to make sure that my contribution actually helped.
I also needed the support of my sisters and sister-in-law ?Danelle, Michelle, and Megan. Without them taking a week and a half of vacation to come from Pennsylvania to take care of our three kids, Sandi and I would not have been able to go to Louisiana. And without the support of Pete Colley, they would have had to figure out some plumbing issues while we were gone.
I needed the support of Deni Martin, Mike Morrissey, and Keith Peters and the rest of the elders to take care of preaching and teaching and the office so that I could go to Louisiana. I needed the help of Beth Rhodes and the rest of my Sunday night class to make sure that things went smoothly. As I write this, thankful for those who helped while I was gone, I realize how much I depend on others every day, every week, and throughout the year.
Paul wrote in Romans 12:5: ?In Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. ? The body of Christ, the church, must get connected to support each other. Then God will use us to do things we would never have thought were possible.
I think what I love the most about reading God’s Word is that He lines it constantly with promises. One of His promises I was looking forward to when I went to Slidell, was His promise outlined in Isaiah 58:7-8 which reads: “7 …and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? …that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh? 8 Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth before thee; the glory of the Lord shall be thy rereward.” This is significant to me because I know that when I need to renew my spirit as Paul tells us, I can always relay on that scripture to remind me that I need to get out and help people, and when I do, He will renew me speedily. (Note: this is one of the few times God works quickly in the Bible!) Slidell for me was not only a time of getting sore even to the bone, but it was a time of renewing. When I returend from there, I was flipping through our church directory and seeing all the pictures of the folks I was down there with, and I thought to myself – this is my family. What a great family!
This passage also lets us know that when we take care of others he “has our back.” When I read through this comment to approve it, I thought that the word “rereward” was a misspelling; it’s not. It’s a more archaic spelling of “rearward”; the NIV and NASB translate it as “rear guard.” So when we become concerned about our own well-being, whether as individuals or as the church, when we’re helping others, we can be assured that God is there to cover us; he’s our rear guard.