A very big step in the process of being enfolded in the life
of Mount St. Scholastica is undergoing training to do dishes. Last Friday night
I learned how to be a “stacker,” and as I stood before the industrial dish
washer, sprayer, and piles of dirty dishes, I had a flashback to my first “real”
job as a kitchen aide at Cushing Memorial Hospital, which consisted of the
exact same duties. My trainer at the Mount, Sr. Barb Conroy, gave me an A+ for
my first night’s efforts in the dish room, which I solely attribute to muscle
memory from that first job 38 years ago.
God, it seems, is a master recycler. Even when we make
mistakes or wrong turns, the Spirit finds ways to put those experiences to use
in unexpected ways. For example, when I was a student at Benedictine College, I
decided to get a secondary teaching certificate, which seemed like a prudent
move for an English major. I knew deep down that teaching wasn’t my calling,
but I forged ahead anyway and was miserable as a student teacher. I never
taught in front of a classroom again, but I now find myself using the lesson
planning and test writing skills I acquired all those years ago as I plan
Scripture study sessions for Lansing Correctional Facility and as I write
quizzes for the health education materials that I edit.
Trusting in God’s recycling capabilities frees us to take
chances and explore pathways with the sure knowledge that no matter the
outcome, our experiences will be used in the service of the body of Christ some
way, somehow…even when it comes to our sins. Like any good dumpster diver, the
Spirit can take what appears ugly, broken, outdated, or useless in our lives,
repurpose it, and make its value shine.
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