Joy in Our Everyday Tasks

I was cleaning the smelly mess out of the garbage disposal, waiting for the next load of clothes to come out of the dryer. I needed to get dinner started but I knew that might be interrupted as I waited – all day – for the roofer to come repair the leak that had already stained the living room ceiling.

“Count it all joy,” came that still small voice I knew to be the Lord.

“You’re kidding, Lord, right? I mean, what joy is there in fishing this muck out of the disposal?”

“Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God… made Himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant.” Philippians 2:6, 7

Time for an attitude adjustment! I often repent while at the kitchen sink. Yes, the Lord meets us anywhere, even while we are cleaning. Now He reminded me that many times I had prayed for Him to use me for His glory. “I’ll go anywhere, do anything for You, Lord,” I’d promise.

Sometimes our heart is so filled with gratitude for what He has done for us that we want to respond with our notion of some grand, wonderful service for Him. But do we overlook the little duties, the tasks we think everyone takes for granted – like preparing a meal, doing the laundry, or cleaning up another household mess?

Are we not serving the Lord, even in these everyday duties?

Philippians 2:6 & 7 tells us that we should have the same attitude as Jesus, Who took on the nature of a servant, a slave. What example did He leave us to follow? On His last night before He died, Jesus took a towel, wrapped it around His waist and washed the disciple’s dirty feet.

Menial, dirty work, unseen by anyone outside that room, misunderstood by Peter. No applause, no crowds, no fanfare.

Elisabeth Elliot wrote in “The Shaping of a Christian Family:” “All work done for God is spiritual work and therefore not merely a duty but a holy privilege.”

Let us find joy in our household duties, however mundane or unpleasant, knowing we serve the King of Kings. May we remember His example and learn to count it all joy as we surrender ourselves to Him in the daily tasks of life. When we do, He will fill our hearts, and homes with joy.


 

Copyright, 2007, Laurie Latour.  www.FutureChristianHomemakers.com

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