A few years ago, I broke my pinky toe. I didn’t just break it, I completely broke the bone all the way through and it shifted over to the side. That being said, it was just a little toe, seemingly insignificant in my day to day life. Let me tell you, the importance of a pinky toe is highly underestimated. I couldn’t put any pressure on my foot without becoming nauseous. I had to be on crutches for a few weeks, then a special shoe for a few more weeks, and there was even talk about a potential surgery to realign the bone. I just kept saying, “but it is just a stupid pinky toe!” My pinky toe may be small, but it was able to cause a mighty big problem in my day to day life. A part of my body I once thought was unimportant became my focus for several months.
As Christians, we are all a part of the body of Christ – different branches from the same vine.
“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” ~ John 15:5
Each one of us plays an important part in the whole. Not a one of us is insignificant in God’s eyes or in His plans. We all have a role to play, and that role will change many times over the years. Sometimes we will feel like we are doing very important work, and sometimes we will be behind the scenes doing things that no one even sees. Each job is important and vital regardless of what our earthly eyes tell us.
As I have mentioned before, my husband and I have planted a church. We are just in the beginning stages with very few staff members. As a matter of fact, we only have 2, my husband and the worship pastor; my services are free. This means that my husband and I pretty much do most of the jobs for now. His job is pastor, so He is out front for all to see. However, there are parts of his job that no one sees or probably even considers he is doing. No one sees the late nights, the hours in his home office, the outside ministry that fills his days, all the learning and studying, etc… It can be overwhelming at times when we stop and think about all we have to do each week, even if on the outside it looks like we have it all together.
I have many roles at the church from Children’s ministry to administration to volunteer. Some of these roles are seen and some very unseen. I love all the roles I get to play and am so thankful for all the opportunities Texas Grand Chapel has given me. Sometimes though, when I am all alone, I doubt my effectiveness. I wonder if I am making a big enough difference or if I am doing enough. Many of my roles are small and seem, to the human eye, to be insignificant in the big picture. Then my best friend sent me this verse:
“Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin, to see the plumb line in Zerubbabel’s hand.” ~Zechariah 4:10
“The Lord rejoices to see the work begin”; He loves the small things that have to happen in order to get something started. He is delighted that I lead the kids, place orders for the church, lead a small group, clean, make coffee, volunteer on multiple teams and every other small odd job I do to help God’s church. He sees the value and worth in the small things, and so should we.
No matter how small, insignificant or unseen a task or role may feel, it is still vitally important to the whole. We are all members of one body.
“For the body is not one member, but many.” ~1 Corinthians 12:14
It takes all of us working together. I have definitely seen this over and over. Some of the smallest jobs are really the most important. We are never unseen because we have a God who always sees. Here is one more thing I have learned, more people see what you are doing than you think!
Here are some hard working people behind the scenes at Texas Grand Chapel.....I see you!!
