Cherith Brooks and Toenails
I’ve fallen in love with this place called Cherith Brooks. It’s a Catholic Worker house in Kansas City.
“Our daily lives are structured around practicing the works of mercy as found in Jesus’ teachings. We are committed to regularly feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, giving drink to the thirsty, welcoming the stranger, visiting the prisoner and the sick in the name of Jesus.”
Around 11 people live there; serving and loving the friends they have visiting daily (none of these workers are actually Catholic though…haha). I would describe more of the community but that’s a whole different conversation I should probably tell in person… or you could read yourself on their website, http://cherithbrookcw.blogspot.com/!
Anyways…
On Monday when I was at Cherith Brooks the girls were talking about how once a month, they have a Women’s Day. All of their lady friends (the girls they serve) come over and they do nails, hair, massages, facials…and other things girls like to do. I was talking about how badly I wanted to come because everyone knows I’m a big fan of nails and nail polish and that jazz.
(I specifically remembered looking at one of the ladies nails from earlier that morning. I was working the showers stations and observed that her nails needed some major attention (aka, I just wanted to paint them). Her nails were similar to my grammy’s…which when I was little used to joke looked like almonds.)
Anyhow, after talking about how badly I wanted to come do nails the girls in the circle got excited because none of them had any enthusiasm towards painting nails. They’d explained thatthey’d rather massage feet.
I think I barfed in my mouth when they told me this.
That is the LAST thing I would ever want to volunteer to do.
But then my friend Sophia said, “Wow! Just like Jesus! That’s so cool!”
I think God punched me in the stomach that exact moment.
I was disgusted at the thought of washing these lady’s feet, after seeing her nails I did not want to even imagine her toenails…thinking that I was too good to do such a job. I’ve been to a zillion camps/trips where the leaders come wash all of the campers feet…but I didn’t know these ladies, I knew the campers. I didn’t know where their feet had been or what could be under their toenails. But Jesus washed his disciples feet…which they didn’t even have tennis shoes. Just imagine how disgusting those suckers were! What a fool I was.
John 13: 14-17:
“14 And since I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other’s feet.15 I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you.16 I tell you the truth, slaves are not greater than their master. Nor is the messenger more important than the one who sends the message.17 Now that you know these things, God will bless you for doing them.”
Unfortunately, I have class on Wednesday’s when they do the Women’s Day but when I had the opportunity to serve Christ, like Cherith Brooks does regularly, I couldn’t think of anything but my own comfort. God never called us to be comfortable, he called us to serve him.
Matthew 25:40: “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’”
If Jesus were here I’d massage his feet… what is the difference?
I’m challenging myself and anyone else who wants to be challenged to serve like your serving Jesus, because whatever we do for one of the least of these, we did for him. So often, (especially Monday) I’ve served just to check off the “I like people and I like helping” list…never “I want to serve Jesus in a way that’s totally different than my everyday life just because I want to love God with my life” list. How awesome could our ministry be if we served like this daily!!?
