Growing Up

Thankfully, my car didn't look like this when I got home. :) (from wikipedia)

I drove home from Dollar Tree today.
It was the first time I've been on the road, ever-- aside from jaunts about the neighborhood
It was just me and my mom, checking to see if they had balloons for my grandma's party on Saturday. "Why don't you drive home?" My mom said to me. "I don't know about that. I might get arrested or something," I said apprehensively. "No!" my mother said with a chuckle,"The worst you could get is a ticket." So I drove home. At about 40 miles an hour. And it wasn't scary, actually, I enjoyed it. I only got honked at once. :)

This beginning of this year, I turned eighteen and graduated from high school.

A few weeks ago, I registered to vote.

My sisters and I took a road trip to Bob Jone University for a competition-- first time out of state without our parents.

I got a debit card with actual money on it.

My sister and I are looking into starting a business-- not sure yet what it will be.

Said sister drives my other sister and me into town for my other sister's art class every week, and said sister and I go grocery shopping, all by ourselves (goodness, that was confusing!) and we drive every week to a choir we joined this year.

Not too long ago, I bought a new Bible online, all by myself. Oh, and did I mention I'm learning Hebrew all by myself, just because I want to?

These are growing-up milestones for me. I look back at all the things I thought only grownups did, and now I'm doing them myself! Including, actually, going to babysit at someone's house and unlocking their door by myself with a key they gave me. That seemed super grown up to me when I was young.
Though I am beginning to grow up, and doing grown up things, I still feel childish at times, and in no way what I felt like I would feel in my imagination. I imagined myself prettier, more confident and poised, being able to have a conversation without feeling awkward. But this is the way God is sanctifying me, and I trust His judgement. I remember a quote in Anne of the Island about by the time you were twenty your character was formed... I only have 2 more years, in that case, and much more work to do. But I'm doing my best to be diligent to be found by God without spot or blemish (2 Peter 3:14) and to work out my salvation with fear and trembling (with God's help of course). He has been so good to me so far! And I want to trust Him with the rest of my grown up life. I think it's a resolution that will last far beyond the New Year.

I will sing to the Lord,
    because he has dealt bountifully with me.
               Psalm 13:6

 

duties

du·ty

noun

1.

something that one is expected or required to do by moral or legal obligation.

I finished scrubbing the pot and lifted it out of the water to rinse it. I looked around. Nobody else was there. I sighed and rolled my eyes. "I'm the only one doing the dishes... again. Where is everyone? Now I'm going to have to wash the dishes and dry them." I picked up the towel with a snap and started drying the pot. "And of course no one will even thank me for it," I continued to myself, as I placed the pot impatiently in its place. Suddenly a thought came to me. Ahem... Abby? Isn't washing dishes what you are supposed to do? Your duty?

Will any one of you who has a servant plowing or keeping sheep say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come at once and recline at table’? Will he not rather say to him, "Prepare supper for me, and dress properly, and serve me while I eat and drink, and afterward you will eat and drink’? Does he thank the servant because he did what was commanded? So you also, when you have done all that you were commanded, say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty.’
Luke 17:7-10

What are your duties? They may be washing dishes, or feeding the dog, or doing school, or babysitting. It's interesting how Jesus reminds us that a master doesn't thank a servant. After all, that's what the servant is there for, right? So we should be with our duties. Since it is what we are supposed to be doing, why do we expect praise and thanks when we do some simple thing? I must constantly remind myself of this when I am doing my duties. God gives us duties for good reasons... to sanctify us, to get things done that must be done, etc. We all have things that must be done. Jesus tells us that we should do our duties not expecting thanks or praise or rewards. 


Grace be with you,

Abby :D

ps. this is a post I wrote back in 2013. it was languishing in the draft folder and I thought, hey, why let it languish any longer? I might (maybe maybe) post some more soon, but I've been pretty busy (including getting my wisdom teeth out), so maybe not. how have you been lately? have any summer plans?