Transforming the Mundane into the Marvelous

Several years ago, a high-ranking military officer gave a college commencement address and offered a bit of advice: “First thing you do in the morning, make your bed.”

 

With all the admonitions he could have made, this commanding officer chose “make your bed”? He explained his reasoning: In making your bed, simple as that seems, you’ve achieved something positive to start your day. No matter what transpires afterward, you can feel good about having done at least one thing worthwhile.

 

Have you ever thought about all the repetitive tasks we perform each day? Besides making the bed (if that’s your practice), we get cleaned up and dressed for the day, eat breakfast, travel to work (unless you work from home, as I do), go through the workday, return home, have the evening meal, relax a bit, and then go to bed – so we can start the cycle over again tomorrow.

 

This doesn’t even include periodic chores like mopping the floors, vacuuming the carpet, doing the dishes, washing and drying clothes, taking out the trash, mowing the yard, and so on. As someone has said, the problem with everyday living is it’s so…daily. 

 

We have highlights to keep us motivated – significant, hard-earned achievements along with pleasant surprises. But in essence, life amounts to moments of magnificence surrounded by masses of mundane stuff. However, with a slight attitude adjustment, we can transform the mundane into the marvelous.

 

How? It starts with recognizing why we do what we do, even seemingly inconsequential things. Because in the Scriptures, Christ’s followers are admonished, “And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him…. Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving” (Colossians 3:17,23-24).

 

Looking at the world around us, it’s clear that God doesn’t do shabby work. His creation is filled with wonders. As His children – and faithful servants – we should always strive to reflect His character and excellence in what we do and the way we do it. Even repetitious chores probably no one will notice.

 

But what if you knew a special guest were coming to your home – the Lord Almighty? Do you think you’d make an extra effort to spiff things up? Or if the nameplate on the desk in your boss’s office read, Jehovah God. Do you think that might affect your approach to your work, even the little things?

 

One time Jesus was speaking to His followers about the proper use of their material possessions; He also implied stewardship of whatever the Lord has entrusted to us: “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much” (Luke 16:10). 

 

Sometimes the way we handle the ordinary and the mundane is a test to determine how well we would handle greater responsibilities and more exciting challenges. On another occasion, as recounted in Matthew 25:14-30, Jesus told of a man who instructed his servants to manage his property while he was away on a journey. He gave five talents of money to one servant, two talents to another, and one talent to the third – “each according to his ability.”

 

The one receiving the five talents shrewdly put the money to work, earning an additional five. The servant given two talents did much the same, gaining two more. However, the servant entrusted with only one talent buried it. He didn’t even put it in the bank to earn a bit of interest. His reasoning? He perceived his master as “a hard man…. I was afraid and went out and hid your talent in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.”

 

To the servants who used the money put in their trust to generate more, the master said, “Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!” 

However, for the servant who did nothing with the money given other than hide it, there was no such praise. Instead, he heard, “You wicked, lazy servant!” His talent was given to the one who had managed to double his money from five to ten.

 

Jesus used this parable to explain the importance of faithful, reliable stewardship of whatever God puts into our care – money, opportunities, skills, even our time. He concluded by saying, “For everyone who has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.”

 

Maybe making the bed seems like a very small thing. Why would that matter to God? But think again about what Jesus said: “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much.” If we would like the Lord to trust us with big, important things to do, a good place to start would be to demonstrate we can be trusted with little, “unimportant” things. 

If Money Were No Object, What Would You Do?

From time to time, reports indicate many people are highly dissatisfied with their jobs. I suspect that a substantial portion of them are also dissatisfied with their lives in general. I’m not among them, but can imagine how miserable it must be to awaken each morning and, instead of a enthusiastic “Good morning, Lord!”, only being able to grudgingly muster up, “Good Lord…morning!”

Years ago, someone asked a simple question that helped me to evaluate the work I was doing and see more clearly what I would really like to be doing. During a phone conversation he asked, “If money were no object, would you continue doing what you’re doing right now?”

This individual wasn’t some wealthy magnate or philanthropist offering to write me a blank check so I could do whatever I wished. He was just a concerned friend. But his question prompted me to put my life into proper perspective. Was I really pursuing those things I believed God wanted me to be pursuing, things He had equipped me to do? Or was I clinging to my job – any job – for the security of a paycheck, or for fear of change or the unknown?

After thinking about the question for a while, I had my answer: If money were no object, I’d definitely be doing something else. This led me to begin exploring other options. Most important, I became very open to any course corrections the Lord was preparing to make in my career.

The issue wasn’t money, however. It wasn’t as if I was envisioning joining the so-called “one percent.” It had nothing to do with how much I could earn. And the question didn’t motivate me to rush out and buy lottery tickets. It involved removing personal finances from the equation entirely. 

At that point in my life, I was well into my most productive years, so if there were hopes and dreams I intended to achieve before my life’s work was over, it was about time I got started. It wasn’t as if I hated what I was doing at the time. There were many positives. But there still seemed to be much to accomplish – potential I felt God had put into me. When was I going to start trying to realize it?

Writing to the turbulent church in the ancient city of Colossae, the apostle Paul gave this admonition: “Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father…do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men…. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve” (Colossians 3:17,23-24). 

This means striving to do our very best, even in undesirable settings and circumstances. But it’s much easier to “work as for the Lord rather than for men” when you enjoy what you’re being asked to do. Thanks in part to that probing question, before long God revealed new opportunities that I might not have even considered before.

One time Jesus concluded a parable by explaining the importance of being faithful with whatever we’ve been assigned to do, even if it doesn’t seem significant. “He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much; and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous also in much” (Luke 16:10). Even if we’re not enthused about our current circumstances, God still expects us to do our “utmost for His highest,” as Oswald Chambers called it.

Then, if and when the Lord chooses to give us a “reassignment,” we’ve demonstrated our capability and readiness for what He has prepared for us to do next. Over the years since I was presented the “if money were no object” question, I’ve discovered another truth. As Ephesians 3:20 promises, God “is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us.” What would you ask of God, or dare to imagine – if money were no object?

To Whom Much Is Given…

We hear a lot these days about the “1 percenters,” individuals and families that purportedly earn and possess wealth in amounts greater than 99 percent of the rest of the population. Without intending to get into a political discourse on this topic, I couldn’t help but wonder – just who are these “one percent”? What are the qualifications for entering such an exclusive, elite assembly of affluence?

These questions are relevant because chances are you and I don’t belong in this group. Instead, we’re firmly entrenched somewhere in “the lower 99 percent.”

These ancient coins are similar to those used by the
woman giving the so-called "widow's mite." She also
was a member of the "one percent" - but in her case,
the bottom one percent.

According to various descriptions, the one percent consist of people with median annual household incomes of $750,000, and median assets of $7.5 million. There are an estimated 1.2 million of them across the country. So, do you qualify? Are you ready to apply for your “one percent” ID card? I’m certain in this case membership does have its privileges.

Before proceeding to my main point, I have one observation: When we hear pundits in the national media and outspoken politicians railing against the "one percent," as well as noted entertainers and even some pro athletes, it’s helpful to realize most of them are well-established members of the "one percent" themselves.

Top news anchors, happy-faced hosts of network morning news shows, nighttime talk show stars – and even many leading national politicians on both sides of the aisle – have amassed net worths into the seven and eight figures, and in some cases, well beyond that. You know the stars from TV and the movies we enjoy so much, strolling those red carpets? Yup, many of them are “closet one-percenters.” So when we hear high-sounding criticisms of the up-and-outers, consider the sources.

But as I’ve already stated, most of us don’t dwell in the highest realms of personal finances – and never expect to be. So does that authorize us to look down (or perhaps, up) our noses in disdain, condemning the rich and famous for their greed and seemingly selfish, lofty lifestyles?

It’s true that Jesus told His followers, “From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more” (Luke 12:48). But just as we may ponder what comprises “one percent” status, exactly how do we define “much”?

Years ago Ronald Blue, financial advisor to many wealthy people, recalled a comment by a world-renowned affluent industrialist who was asked, “How much is enough?” The business magnate without a blink or hesitation replied, “Just a little bit more.” So it seems that regardless of how vastly resourced one might be, “much” can be seen as just a bit more than what you’ve got.

We can mutter and complain about the one percent that we perceive as accumulating too much at the expense of others. But as Jesus told one of His disciples in an admittedly different context, “…what is that to you? You must follow Me” (John 21:22).

While we may point to the seeming injustice, we’re not responsible for how others use or misuse their resources. But we are fully responsible for the resources God has seen fit to give to us. In fact, He’s telling us that if we’d like to have more to share with others, it would be best to start by being generous in sharing from what we already have.

Speaking of our responsibilities before God as stewards of what He provides, Jesus said, “He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much; and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous also in much” (Luke 16:10). As I’ve pondered this statement, Jesus seems to be assuring us that if we’re faithful to properly use what He’s entrusted to us, we can expect to be entrusted with more – to use in a similar manner. At the same time, He’s also saying if we’re not faithful in the use of what He’s given, why should we expect to receive more?

Another time Jesus observed a poor woman in an act that’s served as a glowing example of selfless generosity. “As he looked up, Jesus saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. He also saw a poor widow putting in two very small copper coins. ‘I tell you the truth,’ he said, ‘this poor widow has put in more than all the others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth, but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on’” (Luke 21:1-4).

Sure, we can all look at others and conclude, “They could be doing more.” Maybe a lot more. But the question confronting us is not how much others are giving. The question is, how much are we giving? What are we doing to enhance the well-being of others, whether in terms of money, time, or the unique gifts and talents God has entrusted to us?

Hopefully the wildly affluent – those inhabiting the select one-percent income class – will determine to give more freely to help others, especially those saddled with heavy economic burdens they can’t seem to escape. Ideally, without the force of government legislation. In the meantime, we’d each be wise to honestly assess what we’re doing to assist others.

It could involve giving more to worthwhile charitable causes. It might mean finding someone in your church or your neighborhood that could use some kind of help. Or it may just mean giving an extra big tip for the hard-working server at the restaurant, rather than settling for the bare minimum. If we all willingly did our part, who knows how many millions could benefit – even if the “one percent” chose to do nothing more than they’re doing right now?