“His lord said unto him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things. Enter thou into the joy of thy lord.” Matthew 25:23
“…Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.” I Samuel 15:22
Our weekly Christian devotional
Lately, I’ve been experiencing a real writer’s block. I hate to admit it, but very time this happens I go into complete panic mode.
“Will I ever find inspiration again? What will I do? How will I ever make my mark on the world without my craft?” My mind tilts in a thousand directions…everywhere except for ‘up’, of course.
The truth is, I don’t just get sad. I step into the pits of depression; one filled with shame and isolation.
Somehow, I feel that if I’m not ‘producing’ anything, I’m as useless as speck of dust–one that even dares wasting oxygen!
During this recent writing setback, I felt God pulling on my heart to clean the house. Not only was this majorly inconvenient, but quite annoying as well. Seriously. Who really wants to do housework?
“God, I’ve got WORK to do! Why would I want to wasting my time doing that?” Justifying my position, I swiped my finger on the counter, checking to see if the level of dust was ‘acceptable’ or not. According to me, it totally was.
Re-plopping myself in front to my computer, I determined to get some real ‘work’ done. But, inspiration continued to elude me. Ugh. The truth is, you really can’t win an argument with God…
So, despite how much I wanted to type away, I stopped ignoring the inner voice of God’s wisdom. Reluctantly, I trudged towards the kitchen, pulling out the cleaning supplies and donning those dreaded rubber gloves. This time, I didn’t bother questioning whether the house technically needed cleaning or not. I knew exactly what God was doing. Because this has happened to me before…many times, actually…
You see—I know that my first responsibility is to take care of my husband and home. More often than not, those things never feel ‘important’ enough for me. If I don’t happen to get these chores done, they will certainly be waiting for me when I finally do get around to them. So, what’s the rush?
Scrubbing toilets and sinks is far from flashy or fun. My free spirit would much rather be soaring high on inspiration, typing away in my own little world. I’d prefer taking a walk, chatting with a friend or going for a drive to re-set my inspiration batteries. In truth, I’d probably fancy doing just about anything— but cleaning, of course.
Unfortunately, my husband John likes a spotless abode. And although it’s rare to hear him complain, I know when our house is in order John is definitely a happier husband.
In 1 Samuel 5:22 it says that God values obedience more than ‘godly’ works of service. In actuality, to obey God is the most important thing we can do for Him.
As I read Matthew 25:23, I’m reminded that even though I write content for a Christian website, God expects me to obey Him in the ‘little things’—like dusting, making dentist appointments and sewing on buttons. Doing these things with a good attitude not only makes John happy, but it also puts a smile on God’s face.
And, because God is my ultimate source of inspiration, it doesn’t make much sense to ‘bite the hand that feeds me’. Without a doubt —this website couldn’t continue without Him!
Do you want to do great things for God’s kingdom? I encourage you to faithfully listen to His voice—even (and especially!) in the ‘little things’. Believe it or not, these ‘little things’ are the gateways to God’s greater responsibilities (and blessings!) for you.
The wonderful part of it all is, after obeying God you’ll notice something inside of you breaking off. Something you may not have recognized before—the pride of self-sufficiency. This ‘self-sufficiency’ thing actually prevents the power of God from working in your life.
I don’t know about you, but I NEED all the help from God that I can get. My self-sufficiency isn’t really that great.
How many times do I have to be reminded that I’m completely dependent upon you?
Lord, every set back has the potential to teach me a lesson. Help me to get a deep revelation that I can do nothing without you.
Lord, give me the patience and tenacity to be faithful in the ‘little things’, so that you can trust me with bigger things. Help me to sow good seeds of a great attitude as I obey your voice.
To you, obedience is better than sacrifice. Help me to be the kind of person who asks what you think about every move I make. This will keep my life in line with your spirit.
It will also keep me on the path of wisdom and away from the twisted deceptions of my own ‘wisdom’ and will.
In Jesus’ name, because I want to make my life fruitful and I want every seed that I sow to reap a bountiful harvest for you. I only have one life to live and I want to give YOU my best shot. Amen.”
Thank you for reading our weekly Christian devotional on verses: Matthew 25:23, I Samuel 15:22
Please check back and see what we have for you next week!
Author: Julia Shalom Jordan
