On Filling Those Little Paper Candy Cups

For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. Ephesians 2:10  

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He has made us accepted in the Beloved. Ephesians 1:3-6 

Call me weird, but I enjoy being a part of church program committees. I love the behind the scenes camaraderie needed to make something beautiful happen. Happily, I have had the privilege of being a part of several Mother/Daughter and Ladies Tea events.

Nancy and Melodie at a Mother/Daughter Banquet  - 1995

At times I have had a big part in these event—sometimes even being the speaker. However, at most events my role has been invisible. I have helped plan menus, cut fruits and vegetables, washed and dried dishes, set tables and filled individual paper cups with candies. And I have seen how attention to detail makes all of the difference—the 10,000 little pieces and parts come together to make a beautiful whole.

And this is a very small picture of what God is doing in a huge way. According to Ephesians 2:10 God has planned special work for each of us to do. Good, important jobs that must done in His way and with His strength. Special works that, while often individually all but invisible, if left undone mar the beauty of the program.

By understanding who I am in Christ and the beautiful, universal program God is putting together "to the praise of the glory of His grace," I am freed to do invisible tasks without fearing meaninglessness. Home schooling, caring for clothes, preparing food and cleaning the kitchen can seem pointless if thought about out of its greater context.

Nancy teaching Jonah - 2013

With God's program in mind I can do the mundane tasks of life—and most tasks of life are mundane—without fear of them being inconsequential. When I realize each of those little pieces, in combination with the pieces my brothers and sisters in Christ are contributing, is causing God's program to be played out in all of its splendor, I can relax. Together we are part of something of grand, eternal importance. And while the vast majority is, for all practical purposes, invisible, it truly matters. After all, someone really, truly does need to fill those little paper candy cups!

Image Pixabay

See Following My Heart, a Truly Stupid Idea.

See The Myth that God Never Gives More Than I Can Bear.