Empty or Full?

My devotion today is Exodus 20:9-10
Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work.

Quentin, Avery and Ashlyn have been gone all week on a mission trip to San Marcos. They left on Sunday morning after church. The group was very excited and could not wait to get started on house repairs. The group completed 16 houses by end of day Tuesday. Amazing!

Quentin was the site coordinator and scrambled to find more houses that needed some work. Ashlyn is still in her cast, so she went riding with Quentin, took pictures and helped wherever she could. The group made the difference for some people by making house repairs that they could not afford. They painted, repaired sheetrock, tiled floors, built handicap ramps, roofed houses. Unbelievable since they are all teenagers. God has provided them with the skills needed to assist those in real need.

They are coming home today. I am a little bit jealous. They really helped people this week. I should have gone. They are elated and sad.

Empty or Full? I think the kids are both empty and full. They are empty because they have worn themselves out this week helping others. They have made new friends both young and old. They have done the impossible all for God's glory.

I think they are also full because they have given their time to help those less fortunate. This provides a great feeling of thankfulness for their own environment. It provides satisfaction to really make a tangible difference in someone's life. It lets them know that their efforts matter and together we can make a huge impact.

Now they can come home full of God's glory and empty of energy. They will sleep (rest on the 7th day) and will be renewed to meet tomorrow with determination to do God's work.