Pat Collins on a Jackhammer

We woke up this morning under an incredible blanket of the prettiest snow we’ve seen around here in a long time. Not like the Christmas Eve snow when it was blowing sideways at 50 miles per hour. These are big, fat, fluffy, wet, sticky flakes falling peacefully to earth. The scene here at Legacy today is beautiful. And the mood is playful. Snow like this always seems to put everybody in a great mood. Bonny and Suzanne actually brought snowballs into the building to peg me in the hallway. That was after I had hidden Bonny’s breakfast in her office. Lance is taking tons of pictures. Jason is talking about building a huge snowman out on Mid-Cities Boulevard. The kids down at Circle of Friends seem to have a little more energy and are making a little more noise than normal. And I’m not sure if anybody’s going to get much work done today.

As always, click on the pictures to get the full size. We already have over four inches on the ground here in North Richland Hills. And it’s supposed to keep snowing all day and into the night. I think there will be at least one snowman in our front yard by nightfall. I love the snow. And I love what it does to people here. Praise God for the beauty of his creation and the grace in his blessings.

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Why perform works of service? Why selflessly give to others? Why spend time and energy helping other people? Paul gives us very specific answers: “…so that the Body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ” (Ephesians 4:12-13).

Steve Prescott has been suffering with foot and leg and hip problems since long before we arrived here at Legacy. It’s a bone deterioration problem that I don’t fully understand. And neither do his doctors. Steve had one foot amputated almost a year ago. And now, on the heels of another injury and similiar concerns about deterioration in his other foot, he’s in a wheelchair, using a walker, and wearing a bulky protective boot. To make Steve and Pat’s long story short, their home in Watauga just isn’t wheelchair or walker or bulky boot friendly. Narrow doorways. Cramped bathrooms. Wall-to-wall carpet. And not enough time or money or energy to fix things the way they need to be.

That’s where their circle of brothers and sisters here at Legacy has just absolutely taken over. The money has poured in from several Bible classes. Volunteers have been working for the past two weeks on ripping out carpet and toilets and door frames and making things smoother and wider for Steve. New tile. New facilities. New doors. New paint. New wiring.

There’s a great difference between doing church and being church. This, my friends, is being church. Being church to one another. Showing the Prescotts’ neighbors what being church looks like. Expressing Christian love and concern for one another. Sharing resources and strength. Coming together in the name of our Savior to rescue this family.

I know Steve and Pat are blown away. So am I. I’m so grateful to be a part of this body of believers. I’m so thankful to belong to this loving and sacrificial group. They understand that this is the very thing that fosters and proves Christian maturity. This is the kind of thing that reflects real knowledge. This is what it looks like to attain “to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.”

I also know the real reason you read down this far was to see a picture of Pat Collins on a jackhammer. Well, I don’t want to disappoint. 

I’ve read something just this week that fits well here. I can’t remember if it was Eugene Peterson or Marva Dawn or Josh Graves. It was one of those three. (I’ve got to stop reading three books at a time!) He or she said the essence of a thing is in its doing. Not knowing. Not believing.

Doing.

Peace,

Allan