Ordinary, Little Things

Monday is the best day of the week.

They are my “day off,” which means I get to stay home with our 14-month-old son Felix. It is my one of my greatest joys to use my time to try and connect with him for a full day each week. So far today we’ve enjoyed two meals together, time outside watching the cars go by, a chase up and down the stairs (several times), a dubstep dance party (Felix is learning how to wait for the bass to drop), and some time in prayer (for a few people we really love).

Monday is the hardest day of the week.

My “day off” really means “always on”; not only am I taking care of Felix, but I am also doing my best to get household chores done. Between preparing meals, changing diapers, doing laundry and cleaning the house, there’s not much time for anything else. I am so impressed by those who do this kind of work every day of the week!

As I reflect on the simple joys and difficulties that Monday brings, I am reminded of the simplicity of how God works. He uses ordinary, little things to build his Kingdom and make his Name known throughout the earth.

Ordinary Things

I recently finished reading through Exodus (how’s your Bible reading plan coming?), and I was struck by who God used for the tabernacle construction. The contributions listed in Exodus 35 are very plain and easy to pass over. We read of people who had “willing hearts” (Ex. 5:22) who were able to bring their contributions for the temple construction. For some that meant giving possessions of gold or yarn (Ex. 5:22-23). For others it was their skill in making things out of these materials (Ex. 5:24-25, 35). Other than two of the leaders, no one else is named for us to remember. All we are left with is their ordinary acts of obedience to build God’s dwelling place with his people.

God delights in using willing hearts and ordinary means to accomplish his purposes in this world. The Apostle Paul tells us that the love which Jesus calls us to (John 13:34) looks like a quiet life lived well through faithful work with our hands (1 Thessalonians 4:11). When our hearts are willing, God uses our ordinary obedience to build his Kingdom.

Little Things

Ordinary obedience often seems small and insignificant. Were it not for the Holy Spirit at work in us, it would be. Yet God tells us it is through small things that he yields the greatest fruit. This is why the Kingdom of God is compared to a mustard seed (Matthew 13:31) or even a small amount of leaven (Matthew 13:33). Most often it is the little things we do, such as investing time and care into our closest relationships, which lead to the largest Kingdom impacts.

Some of us are called to do “big things for God” – but not many! Even fewer will be remembered by history. But every one of us is called to be faithful with little things, trusting that God will build his Kingdom through us.

Gods ways are not like ours (Isaiah 55:8). We can be tempted to think that it is going to be those with the skill to lead large groups of people who will make the biggest Kingdom impact. But those who follow the Carpenter from Nazareth should know best what God is able to do with things that appear small and plain.

All of this means that during my current season of life, Mondays with my son are also the most significant day of my week. With that perspective in mind, it is a day for me to celebrate and thank God for the gift of the ordinary, little things he has given for me to do.