Lessons from Mrs Zebedee...

Have you ever heard the saying: "Aim high at least you'll land somewhere?"

Les Brown puts it this way:

"Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you'll land among the stars."

I know the  first time or thereabouts I read about Mrs Zebedee - I couldn't help but wonder "Who does she think she is? What's so special about her children?"

Let's read the passage together:

Don't cut off your nose...

...to spite your face.

Have you ever heard that idiom? I remember it from way back and always found it interesting. More recently, I have had to catch myself from doing exactly that. The idiom essentially warns us not to act in anger, irationally or overreact to a person or situation even if it hurts us too...

Are you like Mrs Aquila?

The first time she was mentioned in the Bible was alongside her husband.

After this [Paul] departed from Athens and went to Corinth. There he met a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, recently arrived from Italy with Priscilla his wife, due to the fact that Claudius had issued an edict that all the Jews were to leave Rome. And [Paul] went to see them, And because he was of the same occupation, he stayed with them; and they worked [together], for they were tentmakers by trade. (Acts 18: 1-3 - Amplified - italics, mine)

When we read this passage as part of our Women's Bible Study at work, the first thought that dropped in my mind was: "Priscillia - or Mrs Priscillia Aquila (for those of us who like titles) - was a rather, in fact very, gracious hostess - to accommodate she and her husband's professional colleague." That thought was closely followed by an introspective question: "How far am I willing to go (& give or even give up) to support a "new-to-town" professional colleague?

Now I don't know if you know this, but I was surprised the first time I heard that:

The only reason why you can cook several live crabs at the same time is because when the water starts heating up and one tries to climb out, the others pull it back into the water. Now I don't know if it's true but if it is can you just imagine it?

Unfortunately, I see many demonstrations of this "crabby" & grabby nature in church - where some people feel they are the only ones entitled to the "good things" of life. This is totally unChristian. When I see this, I ask: "What can I do as Mrs. Pastor?" We should complement, & also compliment, not compete with each other.

Borrowing a leaf from Priscillia, I have decided not to relent in supporting those who are new-to-town - irrespective of the profession or church they belong to. My prayer is that by my conduct, others will be encouraged to do the same...

XYZ

In more recent times I've been talking to myself saying: "eXamine Your Zeal" -
I believe that is a common "bottom line" for us as Mrs. Pastors. For me, it's a simple question: "Why do I do what I do?" or "Why do I go to church at all?"
Put differently, "If I was not Mrs. Pastor, would my service to (& for) God or even my "regular" (almost mandatory) attendance in services be different?"

I believe that our sincere answers to these questions will truly benefit each of us, our husbands, families and the body of Christ at large....let's dig in...