Read Leviticus 11:29

Many years ago I was program director of one of the oldest Home Mission projects the American Baptist sponsor. When first hired my self-imposed duty was to inventory the center’s resources in space and equipment. At the end of one hall was a men’s restroom that was converted to storage. Boxes of used clothes, rusted canned goods, a wheelchair, old Christmas cards all haphazardly stacked into a ten by twenty foot room. Upon opening the door and flicking on the light I heard various scuffling and slapping of tiny feet. Some well intended souls had donated containers of seeds and beans for use as a craft project. Obviously, they had been long forgotten and were now a bonanza for rodents.

As I and two other men started cleaning the facility I asked one worker to flush the dry toilet to see if it actually worked. As the bowl began to fill a rat floated to the surface, crawled up onto the lid and began to preen. He was a good twelve inches long from nose to end, not counting the tail. (We later had to deal with over 54 rats that were determined not to give ground).

As we continued to work my crew kept baseball bats close by to aid…well you know why. Sometime I would stand outside the door to help field questions and to explain all the racket. Which was not always easy when a batter would explain, “Quick there goes a big one, get him!!!!”

Dear God, sometimes I’m guilty of not using all my talents and abilities, a tendency to just let life slide. To allow others do the work. Please Savior help me to be a better tenant and caretaker of what you have blessed me with such as my talents, abilities and resources. Do not let this life you have given me become routine, dark and cluttered because of non-use. Together we can labor and bring about change in a sometimes dark and scary world.

See you on the strange but wonderful path…