Sometimes, like when I'm folding stretched-out underwear (I won't say whose) or washing greasy spaghetti dishes, or cleaning around the back of the toilet, my life feels very small. I find myself sighing over making another sandwich and taking another load of stuff upstairs. I particularly find that cleaning the bathroom mirror after someone has flossed makes me re-think my life choices.
I should be wealthy and successful enough to hire others to do these tasks. Or, my life should be so filled with such noteworthy causes as bringing clean water to the African bush, or teaching underprivileged children or feeding the hungry, that I wouldn't have to be troubled with the everydayness of these menial home tasks.
And then I remember that the work I do here at home is important.
I've been called to love and give my life away each day - and whether that means living in a grass hut somewhere, or in Suburbia USA, the heart issue is the same. It's about faithfulness and obedience and serving. And sometimes the hardest people to serve are the people under your own roof. There isn't a lot of glory in it. Probably no one will ask you to share your laundry story at church on Sunday morning.
I love that God meets us where we are at, even when it's under a pile of laundry. He calls us to radically love the people who are entrusted into our care - by being there every day, by sticking it out in the ordinary, boring days, by learning self-sacrifice and by finding joy in our circumstances. He calls us to be faithful and to look for His hand in the everyday moments and to raise our children to love Him.
There is no such thing as a small life, and I need to remember that. God is with us, using us, molding us into His vessels as we wash dishes and fix sandwiches and diaper babies. His purposes are eternal and He sees what we cannot: that our stories are part of a much bigger story, and that faithfulness - everyday courage - is at the heart of what He loves.
Today's Small Thing is a simple one: let's have the courage to do one task we don't want to do.
The one that's been skulking around making you feel bad for not doing it. That one.
Choose faithfulness in the little things.
Whittling away at a basket of laundry or a pile of dishes or a stack of papers takes bravery. It takes courage to look at the mountain and not walk away from it.
So take a deep breath, say a prayer, and knock it out. You can do it.
Be faithful in the little today...and know that God is with you. He loves a heart that is dedicated to Him and that looks for ways to worship Him in the everyday moments.
How will you be courageous today? What will faithfulness look like in your life?