Have you seen a large animal in the wild? I have seen a manatee in Florida, a pod of dolphins in California, a black bear in Alaska, and a moose in Colorado. I have also seen many large captive animals in zoos. Though it is amazing to see animals up close in an enclosure, there is something so special about viewing large animals in their native habitat, living their day-to-day life.
Recently I was walking on a beach in Florida listening to the waves, dipping my toes in the water, and escaping the sound of other beachgoers. This beach walk was a unique experience. My husband and I came across a leatherback sea turtle digging a hole in the sand. Unlike the loggerhead sea turtle I saw on a beach on another night, the leatherback was out during the day.
I have always loved turtles and have rescued many small ones crossing roads, but this was a brand-new experience for me. The leatherback sea turtle was about 5 feet (1.5m) long and probably more than 800 pounds (360 kg). Her sheer size left me standing there in awe for over an hour until she laid her eggs and returned to the ocean. This process of digging, laying, and covering eggs was a very difficult process for her. Unlike the way she seems to fly underwater as she swims, moving on land was exhausting work. She took breaks to slow her breathing and gather her strength. She was a mother on a mission to cover the eggs and hide them from predators.
1 Corinthians 15:58 says, “Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.”
Have you ever served others and felt tired afterwards? When I was in college, our church offered practical help to the community. We went door to door offering to replace lightbulbs and smoke detector batteries. We also had huge cookouts on neighborhood streets and invited the neighbors to lunch. At these events, we worked long days and were tired when we went home. We loved our community by serving them and offering gifts.
Just as the leatherback mother worked, not knowing whether her young would survive, we often do not know the outcome of our service to the Lord. We are encouraged to give (to others and to God) from a cheerful heart, knowing that God will use our efforts to help others.
