Jesus, Others, Yourself...

Jesus, Others, Yourself.

My husband was in a Bible Study this past Saturday and heard:  JOY is Jesus, Others then Yourself, and it made me think...and then God brought me front and center with JOY in a very real and refreshing way.


Please excuse me as this post will be more personal than professional, but being that KCM is a large part of my life it will all be brought together.  This past weekend was a profound one for me. My sister-in-law, Mary, ran the Houston Marathon, and when I say ran I mean like RAN the marathon.  Her goal was to qualify for the Boston Marathon, in order to do so she had to have a time of 3:40:00...yes that is only 3 hours and 40 minutes.  For those of us not in the running world a marathon is 26.2 miles, and to accomplish this HUGE feat she would need to run on average a 8:10 mile.  If you are anything like myself you cannot help but chuckle at the idea, but for Mary it is a very real possiblity.  In the end she ran it in 3:45:16, meaning she missed your dream by a mere 5 minutes and 16 seconds.  When we got her time we were all so sad and disappointed for her.  Disappointed that she did not succeed, sad that she would not get to see her dream fulfilled...but we all had another thing coming.  Mary was not sad or disappointed, she was so excited that she ran her best time by 13 minutes, there was no sense of failure in her. 

As we sat at brunch congratulating her on an amazing morning I couldn't help but sit in awe of how humble and sincere she was.  Please don't get me wrong, Mary is always very humble and incredibly sincere, but if it were me I would have been prancing around showing off my medal to everyone in the restaurant and expecting praise from them.  Instead she blushed when we clapped for her as she entered and then quietly sat down and began looking at the menu and graciously thanked us for being there.  It was then in that moment that I saw JOY all over her.  Through Mary's running she has touched so many lives, and has been able to be a wonerful and powerful influence to those she run's with.  Mary exudes Christ in all that she does, but through her running she has been able to share Him with other's.  You see running to Mary is all about Jesus, and sharing Him with Others and then she worries about Herself...so running is a JOY filled passion for her.


This all made me start to think about what JOY I have expereinced lately.  Where in my life is Jesus First, Other's Second and Myself Last?  Where is my JOY?  As I sat and pondered those very questions the answer was right in front of me...my JOY is my work at KCM and serving with and for those around me.  Please don't get me  wrong, my Family is my greatest JOY and accomplishment, but the work that KCM does in the community and the piece of it I get to experience fills my heart with a JOY I have never expereinced before.

Have you expereinced JOY in your life recently?  Have you experienced JOY Today?  Are you experiencing JOY this very Minute? If not, what needs to change in your Life?

I pray that this next week will be a JOY filled week for you, and that you will find a new JOY!!