The other day, I was talking to a friend. I said something like, "I'd really like to get more involved in church, so I'm going to see if there's a way for me to serve on the worship team. Because we all know I am NOT working in the nursery!"

Tuesdays are my Life Group night. We get together at someone's house, have some snacks, share our highs and lows from the week, and talk about our Bible study from the week (which maaaaaaybe sometimes I do several days at a time in the parking lot of Chick Fil A on Tuesday night before group?). Oh, and we recite our memory verse from the week. This week I was all ready to go. I completed my week's worth of Bible study (Lord, Give Me A Heart For You by Kay Arthur. Good but…meaty.) AND I memorized my verse. "For momentary, light afflictions are producing in us…glory…think not on which things are seen…think on which things are not seen, for they are eternal" ??? I promise I had it memorized earlier today. But after the night I had, I forgot it, ok?

Our life group decided to serve at the church tonight for date night. Parents drop their kids off for free childcare and they go out on a date, which I think is fabulous. The email I got asked if I would be willing to serve pizza to some kids. Sure, I can do that. No problem. But I showed up, and was immediately rushed to the 1-2 year old room for childcare.

JESUS, I'M FAIRLY CERTAIN I JUST SAID I DIDN'T WANT TO WORK IN THE NURSERY.

I wish you all could have been there. I stood there like an idiot for awhile, admitted to the girls in my life group that children terrify me, and tried my best to be helpful. Okay, tried 12% to be helpful. There was screaming. There was crying. Kids were falling down. Kids were pooping. Cheerios were flying. And I. Was there. For two. And a half. Long. Hours.

By the end of the night most of the kids were starting to have total meltdowns. They were tired, poor little darlings. I picked up one little boy named Luke and rocked him in the rocking chair for a few minutes. He stopped crying, so I put him down. Hello, how can I play Angry Birds while I'm holding a child? But he started crying the moment I put him down, so I picked him back up. And I rocked him while he sat quietly for at least 30 minutes.

And my heart started to melt a little bit. As much as children terrify me, there are times when I get a small glimpse into how beautiful children really are. They just want to be loved, and held, and rocked, and comforted. I think we all want that in one way or another. Not in like, a creepy fetish way where a grown man wears a diaper and a bonnet, but in an emotional, depths of our souls way.

So even though I'm exhausted beyond belief and probably have Purell poisoning, I'm glad I went. I'm glad I was able to serve in a way that took me out of my comfort zone, and I'm glad that I'm now in my quiet bedroom where there are no screaming children.