The Gift of Intentionality

“One of us must be lying,” said Alyssa.

I could barely hear Alyssa over all of the noise. My headache had to of started an hour earlier.

“There is no way, two strong introverts could invite this many kids into this house every week. One of us must be lying. One of us is not an introvert,” she loudly explained over the rowdy game of Spoons at the foldable card table.

“Or maybe it’s God,” I suggested. We both shrugged and agreed.

Introverts definitely do not host events such as the ones we’ve have been hosting lately. Especially with the how many attendees have come and how often they’ve been coming.

But there we were. In the midst of my low-capacity trailer, surrounded by 17 (yes, you read that right) 17 kids. Sharing the graciously donated (and delicious) meal in preparation for the hours of games and laughter that lied ahead.

I know I am an introvert, a strong introvert. And honestly, every Tuesday before we open the door to welcome in the kids, I try to convince myself to cancel it. “I am sick, I have homework, I need to be wedding planning (again, you read that right !!!).” Anything that allows me to rest in my personal comfort of being alone whispers a temptation song in my ear. But every week. Every single week. We joyfully revel in the blessings that come from the choice of opening that door.

Time is so fleeting isn’t it? It’s like the trickster of all tricksters. When you think you have enough time it isn’t long before you don’t. Moving into the park, we knew how important it was to be present. But that stinkin’ time started slipping past us quickly and we had to face it with its opposing force: intentionality. We found you only have time for the things you make time for. Easier said than done, of course, especially for someone who can hardly decide what to wear in the morning. Therefore, it was a perfect invitation to let God step in and do what He wanted. And per usual, He has yet to fail us.

These Tuesday nights: advertised as a free meal, tutoring and a fun time have been evolving into something so much more significant. A simple attempt to bring spiritual elements into these Tuesdays with a prayer wall, exploded in ways we could never have imagined. Besides just a beautiful wall covered in prayers & praises, it has invited in some pretty incredible moments. From a circle of hand holding with an emerging prayer warrior stepping out to lead, a sharing time of the “Where I Saw God This Week” stories and the roaring laughter resulted from the dramatic intensity of a board game. My heart is swelled with love for these kids and their families. And I only expect it to keep growing each time we open the trailer door.

It’s a convicting realization to make that if we had not intentionally made time in our schedules, all of this sweet goodness would simply be nonexistent. God has amazing and has bigger-than-you-know plans in store and my eyes have now been opened to see that one of the greatest tactics of the enemy is to make you believe you don’t have time for them.

Whatever that passion is God has placed in your heart give it the time it rightfully deserves. He and His plans are worthy of an hour less of sleep, a headache and even the double-amount of homework the next night. So I can confidently tell you every week, rain or shine, our door will probably be already open before they even get there.

-Brooke