Quieres Comer?

It's been weird/cool trying to step in my role as a wife. One of the challenges has been to learn how to serve Ryan and how to serve company when they come.

When I was little I spent a huge chunk of my childhood at my Nana's and Tata's. They ALWAYS had people visiting them. Along with that, my cousins, my aunt and my great uncle lived with them for most of my elementary school life. On top of all that, my family would come over almost everyday. There were always people at their house. And with people, there was always food. First thing my Nana would ask when we stepped in the door, "quieres comer nina?" (do you want to eat?). Even if we weren't hungry who could say no to warm cream of wheat in the morning, with so much sugar that you weren't sure which were the white flakes of the wheat and which were white sugary goodness. Or her amazing sandwhichs. Masterpieces on magnificant white bread (a no-no in my parents house) with huge slabs of tomatoe, heads of lettuce, hearty bologne and that oh so good slice of all-american cheese. And these were just her everyday foods. Don't get me started on her chile rellenos, tostadas, tacos, tamales, burritos, toritillas and rice, just to name a few. My nana was always cooking, and when she wasn't cooking she was serving. She was always the last to eat and she ALWAYS, ALWAYS served my Tata first. She was hospitality and love in human form. She was never stressed and always did it with joy no matter how tired she was.

Alot of that rubbed onto my mom. When I was little, everyweek my famly would invite a family over after church for lunch or sometimes even during the week. Countless biblestudies were held in their home. As we got older my parents didn't do so as much because they treasured the nights we could all get together as a family and they didn't want to steal away from that. But even when our lives became chaotic I remember my family would always be ministering to someone. Serving someone. There's not a time in my life that I can remember where my mom WASN'T serving someone. Either taking friends home from school, chaperoning field trips, opening the house for movies and games...the list goes on and on. Selfless, sacrificial and genuine. That's my mom. My Mom is an amazing hostess. She'd ask if you wanted a glass of water even before you fully came in the door. Ryan LOVES going over because he knows that no matter what time it is he know's he can get a hot plate of food. Sometimes I would wonder if our friends would come over for me, or for my mom :-).

So that's the legacy of servanthood I come from. Very daunting as I look at it now. Both ladies served/serving the Lord with all their heart. There were both similarities and differences in how their servanthood played out. The question now is, what will that look like for me? Will God bless me with this same heart of servanthood he bestoyed on my Nana and Mom? I hope so. I feel blessed as it is for God to have given me such wonderful examples. Wonderful examples of joyous serventhood.