Every week at my church, we take a moment to have caregivers hand out "Guest Prayer Cards" to visitors and new worshippers. The caregivers are called to the front, and anyone who is new or visiting is asked to raise their hand so that we can place a card in it. Of course, participation is voluntary, and later in the service, the caregivers come back to pick the cards up again. After the service, people are invited to come back to the "Meeting Place" for coffee or tea and a chance to get to know people in the church. The caregivers man the Meeting Place after the service as well, so there will be a somewhat familiar face there.

This year, the church started doing things differently. I do not know how the caregivers were selected previously, but starting this year, one of the "Life Groups" was assigned to each week to serve as caregivers. (Life Groups are groups of people who meet weekly to get a more personal fellowship experience. They usually number between 5 and 10 people.) The Life Group that was up this week was the one that Jason and Darla (my roommate and his fiancee) attend. Unfortunately for them, they have a small group to begin with, and two of their members were in Los Angeles for the service this morning (well, for longer than that, but the service is the only relevant part). As a result, they needed extra people to help them out. I was asked, and agreed to help.

To make a long story short, I did my duty with the Guest Prayer Cards, and after the service, hung around in the Meeting Place and tried to make myself useful. I wasn't particularly successful. Anyway, about the time we were getting ready to leave, an attractive young lady (I use that phrase a lot, don't I?) came in. Jason and Darla and I ended up talking to her and helping her out. She had just moved to Calgary from Ontario recently, and was interested in getting more involved with people her age (about our age). I will leave her name out of this, since I want to give her a BIT of privacy, but I will say that she works as an occupational therapist, working with children with autism. (I think this is very cool, although she said she feels a little uncomfortable about it because she doesn't like being paid to help people.) She has a bachelor's degree in psychology and a master's in OT (IIRC). Her church at home was MUCH smaller (about 60 people compared to about 3000 at our church here) and she was a bit overwhelmed. Anyway, I am mainly posting this because I feel horrendously guilty about the fact that I have been thinking about how cool it would be to get to know her better and end up in a relationship with her. I mean, the reasons are all good-- I met her through church (something I have been hoping for for quite a while) and she is close to my age, attractive, and very pleasant-- But I feel awful because I feel as though I am, in some way, abusing the opportunity I was given. I mean, who serves as a caregiver at a church to pick people up?

As it stands, she is planning to come back to our church for the early service again next week, and possibly come sit with Jason and Darla and me (just to see familiar faces). I am really struggling with this, though-- Should I be thinking this way at all? Am I just a desperate fool? Could this meeting be something that God planned for me, or am I projecting my own desires and interests into the situation too much?

That's about it, I guess. Wow. I don't think I've posted anything quite like this before... It kind of seems out of character for me. (I guess other people won't see it that way, though. To most, this will just be another "Monkeyman and a girl" story.) :-) Anyway, I am curious to hear any feedback others might have on this.

Don "..." Monkey