service multiplied

So, my days are again full of timers and chalk dust,
of lesson plans and soccer games,
of multiple bells and racing class periods.

It is a busy life, and if I am not careful
I find my days measured by the piles of checking accomplished (or not);
by the success of a new concept taught,
by the attitude of my students.

There is more to my days, however;
and as Jesus told the bustling Martha
(and still speaks to every careful heart),
"One thing is needful...to know me."

Service becomes drudgery or mere discipline
without this relationship.
He is the One who brings meaning to each moment,
who sustains my heart as I give to others.

He takes the smallest fragments I can offer,
multiplying them until enough for a multitude of demands.
Is this a miracle? Yes.
And the baskets of grace remaining will meet my needs besides.