on service

Yesterday a friend asked if I could drive her around this morning to various appointments. I said yes, because I feel strongly that God has blessed me with a car when I most likely don't deserve one, so I'd better help out His other children with it.

However, these appointments are right at the same time as Nathaniel's nap.

I've been pondering this every since. And before that, too--it's been a thought that's weighed heavily on my mind for weeks. I believe in service. I believe that "when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God." However, both my friend and my baby are my fellow beings--and it appears as though when I help the one, I could potentially be really not-helping the other one.

At what point do I refuse doing service outside the home, in order to perform service inside the home?

Last night my scripture study in Enos led me to study the "nurture of the Lord," which led me to Ephesians. This was good because right under Ephesians 6:4 was a little section on service:

5 Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ;

6 Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart;

7 With good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men:

8 Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free.

It reminds me of Matthew 25:40:

And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

In a very real way, when I drive my friend around today it will be as if I am helping Christ get to where He needs to be. At the same time, though, I will be putting another little person through a whole lot to make that happen. Christ suffered for both potential situations: for my friend not being able to go where she needs to go, AND for my baby's body freaking out when he can't go where he needs to go.

So which one takes precedence?

I guess the real answer is to pray about it. It's a little too late for me to do that, because I have to pick my friend up in like 20 minutes and I already committed.

Have any of you ever had conflicting things like this before? What are your thoughts?