The Perfect Storm

A very very very brief background...
The theme for this year at the church that I attend is 'Servanthood'



As a church we are focusing on our title as servants of God and what we can do to bless and love our neighbors. We are also reading Hole In Our Gospel written by Richard Stearns (president of World Vision),



...and at the beginning of every week we are asking God, "Who can I serve this week?" otherwise known as the Monday Mandate.

............................

Every week has been different. Sometimes God makes it very clear to me who I should serve and how I should go about doing it, and sometimes it's more of a random prompt while I go about my day. Today, God answered me with the latter.

Since I realized I still had money on my Crate&Barrel gift card (I LOVE gift cards), I drove over to Beverly Hills to pick up some cooking supplies. I had to circle the block 3 times to find parking, and each time without fail, I got stuck at a red light next to a lady with a sign asking for money or food. I knew what I had to do even though it was out of the way and I was on a time restraint. I parked my car, walked over to Starbucks (I had a gift card. I LOVE gift cards), picked up food and tea, and walked it over to the lady who hadn't moved from that corner. I spoke to her briefly as she took the food and drink, and went on my way. As I walked down Beverly Drive, I was angry. Here were hundreds of people shopping and dining at overpriced cafes, and simply turning a blind eye to someone who just needed a little bit of help. I was discourage, frustrated, and so angry.

To add to it, I saw this on my Facebook feed.


I love Stephen Colbert, and this quote is so convicting.

I let all of this stir in my heart while I finished running some errands and drove home. With a little push from the Spirit, my anger and frustration had eventually turned into hope.

Religion that our God accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
James 1:27

The anger I felt was me being "polluted by the world." In reality, what I felt was just a teeny tiny taste of an answered prayer. See, as scared as this makes me, I have been praying that God will help me to see, hear, feel, and love the way that He does. I want to be someone who see's opportunities to serve all around and takes action. There is going to be a lot to learn.

I don't like the idea of blogging about my weekly Monday Mandates but this was just something that I wanted to share.

Quality Doesn't Come Easy

I've learned something this week. I've learned that sometimes the quality of an item really does justify it's price.

Case in point:

Nars Blush ($28)
vs.
L'Oreal TrueMatch Blush ($10.95)

Just a little background...during my last 2 years of college in New York, I lived in the financial district where the subway would basically spit me out right in front of the doors of Sephora so after class there was a lot of time spent in the store exploring. This is where I found Nars blush and some of the other cosmetic items I use now. I bought the same blush multiple times...until recently when I suddenly found myself with nothing left. I didn't want to go to the mall and thought, "I just need any kind of blush really" and bought something at CVS. It works, but totally not in the same way. I was disappointed and can say that Nars really is the better product.

The same happened with...

Laura Mercier Eyelash Curler ($16)
vs.
Revlon Eyelash Curler ($5.99)

When I bought the Laura Mercier curler, the sales lady told me that it works really well with asian eyes. At the time I was sure that she was just trying really hard to make a sale and I just bought it (I hate to say it, but I am a brand loyalist. I like Laura Mercier stuff). The Laura Mercier curler ended up being really great. It was so great that even my mom noticed that my eyelashes looked much better than before. Then a few months went by and I guess I was pressing on it too hard because the little handle broke. Again, without much thought I figured any curler would work so I bought the Revlon. The sales lady was right about the Laura Mercier; the Mercier fit my small eyes perfectly where as the Revlon is clearly meant for women with beautiful large eyes.

I guess my point is that as I've been getting ready every morning while sitting at my vanity table, I've realized that good things come with a price. The same can be said about our relationship with God. Following Christ is definitely not an easy thing to do in this world. A real relationship with God requires time, commitment, and sacrifice. These things are not easy to give so freely. But deep down inside we all know that a life lived squarely with God results in a high quality life and the end result of this relationship brings about something far greater than a life that is squandered away on ephemeral things.


side note: I've had this experience with eye liner too. The drug store brand that I am currently using is definitely no good and smears very easily. I've got small Asian eyes and smearing/raccoon eyes is a big issue for me. Not cool. Time to tune up my makeup collection.