And let everything be lost in the shadows
Of the light of your face.
From "Captivate Us" by Charlie Hall, Christy Nockels, Nathan Nockels
I work for our church, which is all at once a most rewarding and most challenging endeavor. I'm surrounded by some of the most creative, intelligent, intuitive and inspirational people, truly gifted in many ways. I love it! But sometimes we tend to lose ourselves in all that creativity and intelligence and inspiration. Sometimes we miss the point. Driving to church one Sunday morning I found my mind wandering to craft supplies and snack cups when the song above came on the radio. I've heard it a million times before, but this line spoke to me (nay....SCREAMED at me) for the first time ever. I wanted the morning's curriculum to be successful, but I was focusing on the wrong way of going about that. Sure, it's nice to come into a classroom of perfectly stocked glue sticks and construction paper, but if I'm doing my job the right way what I should really want those kiddos to experience has nothing to do with the supplies at all.
It's not just in church work that we lose the forest for the trees. We live in a Pinterest-board society that celebrates the details all over the place. Themed birthday parties, accessorized clothing, culinary presentations. Once I fussed at my own sister for bringing the wrong color of cupcakes to a baby shower. (I've apologized, but she still brings it up sometimes.) And while the details can be fun sometimes, they are never the point.
When I make it about the details, I am in fact making it about me. My success at pulling something off or my failure when it doesn't go right. I am making WHAT I'm doing more important than WHY I'm doing it and I am leaving God out of it. I am forgetting that the most rewarding part of any endeavor is what I allow Him to do through me, which doesn't have anything to do with me at all. Or my glue sticks.
Lord, let the WHY drive me, not the WHAT. Let the details of what I'm doing hardly stand out at all next to the glory of who You are and what You're doing. And when details must be tended and to-do lists must be checked off, help me to do it joyfully, with patience and kindness. Amen.
XOXO...Kelly
Oh Kelly, how miss getting to sit and visit! You have such an awesome way of putting things into perspective that I can relate to or I need to reevaluate. I did this very thing with Sydney's graduation party and ended up missing the joy of being part of the day. For anyone other than Kelly reading this, I am an anti-pintrest person, but I did it. Ughhhh! Kelly, if we do ever teach again, you will have to be in charge of the glue sticks. But, that never stopped you from bringing the love of God to the girls we were teaching!! Even when Abby could NOT make a fox, you made sure she knew that Christ was in her and in that place! Love you friend!!
ReplyDeleteOh Kelly, how miss getting to sit and visit! You have such an awesome way of putting things into perspective that I can relate to or I need to reevaluate. I did this very thing with Sydney's graduation party and ended up missing the joy of being part of the day. For anyone other than Kelly reading this, I am an anti-pintrest person, but I did it. Ughhhh! Kelly, if we do ever teach again, you will have to be in charge of the glue sticks. But, that never stopped you from bringing the love of God to the girls we were teaching!! Even when Abby could NOT make a fox, you made sure she knew that Christ was in her and in that place! Love you friend!!
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