I walked along the empty shore this morning contemplating what my part of God’s big plan could possibly be.
But the more I thought, the more I realized that my part as much as I want to make it out to be huge, as much as I would love to help change the world for better, my part is but a single blade of grass in the expanse of the universe.
How, then, is it possible for my mundane life to bear significance?
My life is much like many of yours out there: I wake up. I eat. I take the kids to school. I go to work. I eat. I pick up the kids. We do our chores. We eat. We go to sleep. Life basically follows the same pattern day after day, with fun substituted for work on the weekends.
Some of you may have different lives of service. You go on mission trips. You feed and clothe the poor. You minister to the biggest or smallest of congregations. You live alone. You live with dozens. But where ever God put you, you still wonder the same thing.
How is what I do part of God’s big plan?
Although I found a handful of beautiful shells on that beach (Thank you, Jesus!), I did not find my answer other than to speculate that perhaps we were not meant to know exactly what our part of the plan is. We are just to have faith in knowing that as insignificant and mundane our lives may sometimes seem, each one of us holds and important role in human existence.
As I walked along, the Lord reminded me of a verse in the Bible, one that I often overlooked because, quite honestly, I thought it was boring. And as a new Christian, reading the bible again with new eyes, I still found it hard to get past the very first verses of the very first chapter of the very first book of the New Testament.
Matthew 1:1-17. The lineage of Jesus Christ.
I wonder how many of you were just like me and glanced over thes first 17 verses of the bible to get to the “good” part about the birth of Jesus.
For many years, I never stopped to mull over those verses of genealogy. I just thought perhaps it was just to show how Jesus was a direct descendant of both Abraham and David.
But today, God pointed out something new: The other names.
Azor. Salmon. Obed. Matthan. Elihud.
Other than listed in the genealogies, these men had no other significant stories as told in the bible. They just were.
They may have had lives just like you. Their wives may have had lives similar to my own. Just biding time. Waiting patiently for God to reveal himself. Generations upon generations waited patiently for the presence of God. Some may have been warriors. Some may have been peacemakers. In just living their lives, I’m pretty sure they did not know their part in God’s plan. Just like me.
But there they are because their significance was to be revealed generations later. They are key figures in the lineage of Jesus Christ.
Perhaps we, too, will not know our own significance, and all will not be released until much later.
I don’t know if this offers any consultation to you, but it does reassure me. God’s gentle reminder on the beach this morning lets me know in the whole of this universe, that this blade of grass sitting before you is as important as all the others. For God loves us all.
Be still. Have faith. And trust in Him, who knows all. ?
~Jenn
There’s a beautiful reflective quality in your writing. Your words drew me into your thought process and encouraged me to meditate on my place in the heart of Father God. Thank-you for this, dear sister!
Thank you for you kind words, Wendy! ?
I loved this! I try so hard to find something of significance in these lists of names. If God wrote the Bible, He intended for every name to be in there. They were individuals. He loved them too. A beautiful thought!
Thank you, Traci! I always skim past the names never giving them much thought, but they are always God’s most important thoughts – along with us!
Thank you so much for this! I love this and the ending is perfect. I can write it on a post card and read it though out the day as a reminder: ” Be still. Have faith. And trust in Him” <3 this so much!
Thank you, Kasia! That made my day! ?
This was so hard for me to read this morning, but it’s so true. It’s difficult to accept that our role might be that of a blade of grass, and still remember that our actions are meaningful, have an impact on those around us, and can work for the kingdom. Thanks for your post, really got me thinking!
Yes, some of us might be a blade of grass, while others are great oaks, but no matter what our role may be in our short period here on earth, we are valued and loved tremendously. ? Thanks for reading!