troubles

Serve "the brother in humble circumstances" James 1:9.

There are a lot of people that fit that description in our world. Or maybe it would be better to say in our town.

Serve the person "who perserveres under trial" James 1:12.

Serve the poor. (James 2:2)

......"orphans and widows" James 1:27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.

We are supposed to serve until we are tired. Gal 6:9
And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.
And what a blessed kind of tired it would be, wouldn't it? To be totally drained from serving God. I wouldn't know. I am not drained. If we are Christ centered, we are people centered as well. If I do better at devoting my day at being a blessing to someone, I could improve my life immensely.

I need to learn to serve in sorrow, since I am so blah about my dad's illness.
From the message bible: 1 Peter 4:12
12-13Friends, when life gets really difficult, don't jump to the conclusion that God isn't on the job. Instead, be glad that you are in the very thick of what Christ experienced. This is a spiritual refining process, with glory just around the corner.

I have to stop falling into the poor me trap. I need to learn to turn to God more often, and to know what to do what I turn to Him. I need to be more familiar with His word, and dig deeper, as I used to do. I need to reach out to friends more, and stop being a hermit about it.