Like most professions, I don’t do just one thing. I don’t only flip a switch or turn a knob or pull a lever to produce a widget. I feel sorry for those poor souls who do only one thing eight hours a day. Ironically, pastors—who do many things—get graded on only one thing—a single 30-minute period on a Sunday morning. Gratefully, most of the things I do outside of a Sunday I truly enjoy. I enjoy coffee with guests; I appreciate managing a staff; I even welcome an occasional stopped up toilet as a reminder that my position is really one of service. After a long week, I look back and realize I did hundreds of things.
What scares me are those afternoons I plop down on my couch and evaluate my comings and goings in the church world and wonder if my harried activity accomplished anything of worth. This is no pity party. I promise. I’m not saying everything I do doesn’t have some sort of importance attached to it. That is, plunging the church toilet is important. It matters on multiple levels. Health and hygiene and guest impressions are two that immediately come to mind. Taking one of our homeless friends to breakfast? Also important. In fact, objectively more important than the toilet. Right?
So, I’m not saying I don’t do important things. Straightening chairs, picking up trash, meeting with staff, writing a sermon, leading an elders meeting—these all matter. But, well . . . some matter more than others. This leads me to a recent commitment I’ve made.
Do one thing.
Do one thing a day that matters. That’s it. I had this revelation several months ago after an entire day of church renovations. Our whole team was pitching in. We were painting and sprucing up our facility for the upcoming season. At the end of the day, I planned on visiting a man in our church who had been homebound. I sat with him, we talked, laughed, prayed and then I drove home.
On the way home I realized what had just happened mattered. Cleaning up our facility mattered too. But somehow this human to human interaction carried more weight. So right there in my 2005 Mazda, I prayed that God would give me ONE THING a day to do that really mattered.
Most days it comes easy. My vocation puts me around lots of need. But some days I have to slow down and look. Other days, I legitimately pray for God to interrupt my vanilla living with a little bit of kingdom living. Dangerous living. Risk-taking, wallet-emptying, inconvenience embodied kind of living. You know, the kind of stuff that matters.
Lunch with a homeless friend.
Picking up trash in the park.
Sitting with a colleague in need.
Paying for a meal.
Asking that extra question.
It happens in a thousand different ways.
All of these count, of course. Not that anyone is counting. My point is they all matter. Some more than others. But this one little revelation of doing one thing has given me a chance to see my day, not as a list to accomplish, but a mission to be a part of.
Interesting. I would say in my life, being led by the Holy Spirit, seeking the Lord’s will for the day, flowing in the stream/wind He blows sometimes leads to spiritual adventures and ministry, Yes, the daily duties have to be done, but hopefully, the Lord will do things He will get glory from, but, I feel the journey, faithfulness in the little things, being aware of those special “encounters/one thing” God may have for my day. But, in my life most of these aren’t planned, but spontaneous. Like today, while shopping at a thrift store for a bookcase for one of our student renters, I had a totally God-planned conversation with a Christian employee. There was the Holy Spirit’s witness in both of us, even tears. It was a Holy time. Other days, I don’t see this sort of thing, but I do the next thing. So, I don’t know that I can said I can choose one thing each day, but I do understand what you’re saying. Thank you for your sharing and service.
I love it. Thanks for modeling so well what it looks like to abide with Jesus.