Who Moved My Bookmark?

having moved my “book mark”
I began paging through the
2nd Corinthian / Galatians neighborhood
to find where I had been reading

my bible is so marked up
that I cannot rely on
“if it’s not underlined
then you haven’t read there”
method of finding my way
along the road I am traveling!

reading my underlining
in the 2nd Corinthian / Galatians neighborhood
this scripture stopped me
exactly like
when I’m on my 7-mile walks
enjoying the yards landscaping
when a landscape bed
or specific landscape detail
captures me!
when this happens,
I’m thankful for Ken walking beside me,
watching that I don’t trip and stumble

“Now I am coming to you for the third time,
and I will not be a burden to you.
I don’t want what you have;
I want you.
And anyway, little children don’t pay
for their parents’ food.
It’s the other way around;
parents supply food for their children.
I will gladly spend myself
and all I have for your spiritual good.”
2 Cor. 12:14-15 NLT
(emphasis added)

The words I have in bold

"I don’t want what you have;
I want you"

"I will gladly spend myself
and all I have for your spiritual good"

are literally “in bold” in my bible . . .
meaning that in addition to
underlining with a red pencil,
I color solid specific words
or phrases allowing my attention
to be caught as I page through my bible.

Who are the “little children?”
new believers
immature believers
hurting believers
backsliders
those unskilled in the Word
unsaved

do I care?
am I willing?
here I am, Lord,
use me?

for the “little children’s”
spiritual good” ???

Am I willing
to set aside
my agenda
my time
my self (spelled that way on purpose)
my whatever
for your spiritual good ???

God doesn’t want what I have
God wants to BE through me
God wants me
His vessel
to labor

Being a laborer is
hard work
inconvenient hours
without pay
maybe or maybe not
seeing the harvest or fruit

planting
weeding
watering
watering
weeding
watering
watering
weeding
watering
watering

but the question remains . . .
do I care?
am I willing
to be “spent”
for your spiritual good?

God is willing
I am willing

He walks beside me
I am a co-laborer with Him