I have always loved looking at people’s hands. I love my husband’s hands, especially the older he gets. They are large, rough, and starting to show his age. I love my mom’s hands— they’re beautiful and show the years she spent raising her daughters, caring for her elderly mom, and helping me with my kids when they were little. I love my dad’s hands—he is ninety years old and they look very similar to this picture you see. These people that I mentioned are known for their hands, and hands represent a life lived.

I have an older friend whom I have known since I was in the seventh grade who is very sick. Mrs. Carolyn worked at the school I attended when I went to a new school my seventh-grade year—she was the face that represented the school. She welcomed me into “The White House” (the school’s main office was a historical home we nicknamed The White House) with the most beautiful smile I still remember. She gave me a tour of The White House and she introduced me to my first friend at my new school. She was perfect for the job and worked there for many years. She was known for her smile, her big voice, her hugs and her infamous clown costume that she wore every year in an annual parade around campus.

She was known for these characteristics and as I’ve been reminiscing about her, I have been thinking about what I want to be known for. Have I made an impact in the lives of many, like my friend Mrs. Carolyn? She is the epitome of these verses:

Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me will find it.”- Matthew 16:24-25 CSB

Not only does my friend represent Jesus, but she also lives her life according to these verses from Matthew. She loves Jesus with all of her heart, soul, mind, and strength. She loves others more than she loves herself and in living like that, she denies herself. After raising her own kids, she essentially helped raise an entire school of more sons and daughters. In the years that she worked at the school, she was the hands and feet of Jesus. She served the students with all of her heart, she honored Jesus with every breath. I would love to be known for the same qualities!

I want to be known for loving Jesus and following Him with everything in me. I want to be known for loving others, regardless of everything that makes them different from me. I want to be known for being servant-hearted. I want to be known for being a prayer warrior and believing that God will answer the bold prayers I pray on behalf of my family and friends.

Therefore, let us approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in time of need. -Hebrews 4:16 CSB

My friend Mrs. Carolyn is known for these things. I want to be known for things that matter, that make a difference in God's kingdom. What do you want to be known for? 

May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you, LORD, my rock and my Redeemer. -Psalm 19:14, CSB

I pray these words encourage you, friend. 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

When Jennifer isn't focusing on her family of her husband and four (almost) grown sons, she is passionate about leading women to a deeper knowledge of and relationship with Jesus, through the reading of the Bible and through prayer. After years of serving in student ministry, the Lord pulled her out of that and planted her solidly in the women's ministry within her local church. She leads a small group on Wednesday nights, and together they study the word of God verse by verse, and book by book of the Bible. She loves to write, and you can find her sharing regularly on her blog, Overflowing With Thanksgiving. She also loves to sing and to help lead worship at her church, and will always be a choir girl at heart. You can find out more about her and her hobbies on her favorite social media outlet Instagram, as JenLloydGoodwin.