Wherever You Need Me

When I help coordinate a soup-line every Saturday, there comes a time when the preparation is nearing an end and I have to assign everyone jobs for the time during which we serve dinner. There are a number of jobs that are needed: working in the kitchen or family dining room, serving food or drinks, washing trays or taking out the trash. Some are more glamorous than others, but they are all very important. When assigning the jobs, I try to take into consideration people’s preferences but sometimes when I ask, the reply comes back: “Wherever you need me.”

As we celebrated the feast of the annunciation on Friday, that line came to mind: “Wherever you need me.” This is basically what Mary was saying with those words, “I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.”
And this is how we too are called to respond to the Lord when He gives us various “assignments”, even when they may be unexpected or difficult. We are not to insist on serving God only in the way that we would like, but rather we agree to go wherever he needs us most. Like the volunteer who is just happy to be able to help in some way, it should be with joy that we receive the opportunity to be used by God, submitting our gifts, our time, and ourselves in service to Him.
It is indeed a great privilege to be a part of God’s work, and we know that whatever job he assigns us, it is an important one for which he will provide the grace and strength to do it well. May we continually reply to the Lord’s calling as Mary did upon receiving the angel’s message: “Wherever you need me.”