The Girl Next Door ☎︎: Stuck in a Rut

It's a Tuesday kind of day. You know what days I'm talking about. There is nothing special about it. You have nothing to look forward to. The weekend seems far away and you no longer feel refreshed and re-energized from the weekend before. It's one of those days where you don't remember driving to work nevertheless what you ate for breakfast. Years from now (make that a week from now), you won't recall the events that occurred on this day.

It's a routine, "business as usual" 24 hours. What I occasionally call "throw away days". Yikes, so harsh. This day is not even worthy to go in a filing cabinet; it's sent straight to the trash never to be looked at again.

How are we to respond to a middle of the week kind of day? How are we to respond to a whole collection of them? Does God value such days? Can God really use such days? Can such days bring me joy? How can I glorify God and find joy in Him in the midst of the "same ol' same ol'"? The daily grind, my daily chores, the activities, tasks, and chores that are only a means to an end? Does He even care about those?

GOD WORKS ON TUESDAYS

God is still active and moving in our lives on the ordinary days; we just need His eyes to see Him in the midst of them. Somehow we get it into our heads that the Gospel does not apply when we are switching a load of wash or when we are spellchecking our research paper. But the very Spirit of God is living inside us whether we are sitting in the car or a church pew, reading our junk mail or reading the Bible.

"Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there! If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me. Psalm 139:7-10"

We don't have to wait until Sunday or a quiet moment to ourselves for God to show up in our lives. He is right there with you all the time. Trust that His presence and love makes every moment special no matter where you are at or what you are doing.

“What gives moments meaning is not the moments themselves but the presence of Christ with us in the midst of them.” Emily Freeman

WHAT IF ROUTINES ARE A GOOD THING?

God delights in the repetitious moments of this world, from the rising of the sun each morning to the ringing of our alarms each morning. He loves order. He created the entire universe to operate according to strict cycles, routines, habits, and schedules. Including us! We wake up when the sun rises and sleep when the moon appears. We have days of rest and days of work.

And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day. Genesis 1:31

In fact, we, as "creatures of habit," find comfort in the familiar. We order the same item off the menu of our favorite restaurant, we sit in the same spot at church every Sunday, we tap on the same app each time we unlock our phone.

On the other hand, I think a part of us dreads going through the motions. We get bored with routines, guilty for our habits, restless with predictable, and depressed by the mundane.

But maybe some routines aren't such a bad thing after all? What if God created the "daily grind" to be a good thing? Work existed before sin did. God gave Adam the task of naming all the animals, a job that, to us, would get old fast! But then sin entered the world and brought disorder to the order. It is sin that puts the "turmoil" and "burdensome" into work.

Christ wants to redeem our work and restore it back to the fulfilling, joyous God-honoring business that He originally designed it to be. He wants to be right in the middle of our routine tasks.

"And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read." Luke 4:16

"And Paul went in, as was his custom, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures." Acts 17:2

"When Daniel knew that the document had been signed, he went to his house where he had windows in his upper chamber open toward Jerusalem. He got down on his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as he had done previously." Daniel 6:10

The godly men of the Bible new God was using them in the midst of their customs and schedules. It is God who instills happiness and meaning into our every daily activities. And let's face it, some tasks need more of God's grace than others! Boring routines are not too strong for God's joy and grace and overwhelming presence.

"Perhaps God is strong enough to exult in monotony." - Chesterton

WE NEED NEW EYES NOT NEW ROUTINES

Praise the Lord that He does not grow weary of doing the same things for us over and over. His mercies are new each morning (Lam 3:22-23). He never stops forgiving us (1 John 1:9). He is faithful to fulfill all His promises whether we trust them or not (Heb 10:23).

In the midst of another ordinary day, claim the promise of God that He works ALL things for our good (Rom 8:28) and according to the purpose of His will (Eph 1:11). Therefore, no task goes to waste. There is no such thing as a "throw-away day" in God's eyes. We can glorify God even through our eating and drinking (1 Cor 10:31).

Since the beginning of time (Acts 13:16-24), God uses the seemingly insignificant circumstances of His people to accomplish His Will: the glory of His Name and the salvation of His people. God works behind the scenes of all our comings and goings. We don't have to know how God is using all things for His purpose to know that He is.

Let us reflect God's faithfulness by being faithful with the tasks He has given us to complete each day. By doing "the ordinary" according to the glorious might of our extraordinary God (Col 1:11), we redeem the order of the world sin so often tries to pervert.

Let's boldly ask Him for His strength to complete each task with His endurance and joy, knowing that it is not useless. God is using each essay, each file, each email, and each load of laundry to sanctify our hearts and bring order to this world.

“It is ingrained in us that we have to do exceptional things for God—but we do not. We have to be exceptional in the ordinary things of life, and holy on the ordinary streets, among ordinary people—and this is not learned in five minutes." Oswald Chambers