Minimize Me, Maximize You

by Michele Boy | June 15, 2023

  I’m writing this on Flag day, the 14th of June. Over the weekend, we were in Goodland, Kansas for a sheep and goat showmanship camp. It’s fun, challenging, and filled with God. A few things happened that weekend. 
  First several of us went to grab lunch at a local establishment. There was quite a line. At the back of the line was a group of bikers. Their vests said combat veterans and they all had different patches. Some said Vietnam, others had Desert Storm. One had a small patch that made me laugh. It said I’m a ray of (expletive) sunshine. Not one of them seemed agitated at the line. Everyone was so respectful and I wish I had gotten up to shake each of their hands to thank them for their service to our country, to a cause greater than self. 
 Later, the head of the camp led a beautiful devotional where he said, “Minimize me, maximize You.”
How often are we caught up in our selfish desires, dreams, irritations? 
I have struggled with a personal frustration for a few months, unable to get it out of my head. I felt like whatever I did, wherever I went, it was pointless. Nothing was going to work the way I thought it should. Me, me, me.
  I don’t think it is all bad. I want to head in a certain direction. I need to do the work to get there. And goals and dreams are important. But what about God? Am I putting Him in a box? Am I directing Him? Or trying to? Yes. 
  I heard a woman married 50 years say, there is three in our marriage. God, my husband, and me. 
  Do we do that? Do we include Him in our day to day? Do we start the day thanking Him? asking what He needs from us? Or what He wants from us? 
I get scared to ask that sometimes. Could I lay my life down for my brother or sister? Will He ask me to do the impossible, like forgive that particular someone who went too far? 
  On this Flag day, I want to stop to remember how important that freedom is. How thankful I am for those who gave their life for us. And those willing to give their life for us. 
I am not a fan of wrapping God and the American flag together. It makes me feel like when we place them together, we forget God is God of all the nations, the entire world. 
 But the concept that anyone would lay down their life for us is an incredible gift of sacrifice. 
I heard the lyrics to America the beautiful in my head. America America. God shed His grace on thee. 
I pray we all can stop for a minute not just today but every day and ask God, what do you want me to do? 
Sometimes we get on our high horses thinking we know best. Sometimes we think we know what others should do. 
But we are not God. 
  Perhaps in this fast paced crazy life, when it seems like things are going south, we remember we are here for a purpose. And we may not understand a lot of what is going on. It may look completely different from what we thought it should. But God is the same today tomorrow and yesterday. 
And while our country is not perfect, I am proud to be an American. I am grateful for our freedoms. And I am thankful for our flag. 
“America! America!
God shed His grace on thee
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea!”
By the end of the weekend, the thing I was sure was not going to work out came together beautifully. Just because we can’t see it doesn’t mean it wasn’t meant to be. 
Can we let go and let God? 
The song Cover me in sunshine by Pink comes to mind.
“Cover me in sunshine 
Shower me with good times 
Tell me that the world’s been spinning since the beginning 
And everything will be alright.”