Ministry of the Mundane

(Summer column for the Jamestown Jottings)

“Let us remember that the life in which we ought to be interested is “daily” life. We can, each of us, only call the present time our own…Our Lord tells us to pray for today, and so he prevents us from tormenting ourselves about tomorrow. It is as if God were to say to us: It is I who gives you this day and will also give you what you need for this day. It is I who makes the sun to rise. It is I who scatters the darkness of night and reveals to you the rays of the sun.” -Gregory of Nyssa


In these sweet and somewhat sleep-deprived days of caring for an infant and a three year-old, some could accuse me of not getting much “accomplished.” At the end of the day, when the dishwasher needs unloading again, the laundry basket has been quickly refilled, and toys are scattered about, I often find myself thinking that someone could walk through the front door of my house and inquire as to just what I’ve been doing all day. But anyone who has spent a day with a couple of small children, knows that there is plenty to keep one occupied in the simple attempt to keep everyone fed, tear-free, and generally happy.

While I may not think of changing diapers and making Macaroni and Cheese as a calling, this week I was reminded of the various forms that ministry takes. Our small group is currently studying Jon Ortberg’s book, The Life You’ve Always Wanted: Spiritual Disciplines for Ordinary People. When reading and discussing the discipline of servanthood, one ministry that Ortberg focuses on is the “Ministry of the Mundane.”

Ortberg writes about how Jesus took little children in his arms and said, in effect, “You need this little child. You need to help this little child, not just for her sake, but more for your sake. For if you don’t, your whole life will be thrown away on an idiotic contest to see who is the greatest. But if you serve her – often and well and out of the limelight – then the day may come when you do it without thinking, ‘What a wonderful thing I’ve done.’ Then you will be begin serving naturally, effortlessly, for the joy of it. Then you will begin to understand how life in this kingdom works.”

If we wait until we are at church, or until the time is convenient to live out our faith, we’ll miss most of the opportunities before us. The majority of our chances to show God’s love are in life’s everyday moments – at the grocery store, walking outside to get the mail, feeding our kids breakfast, or driving down the highway. It’s in these moments that we reach out to others, that we’ll find ourselves reaching out to God.

We often need to be reminded that if we follow Christ, we should be living in an upside-down world where the “first shall be last and the last shall be first.” In the very tasks that the world may consider worthless, we can find worth -- and even the fingerprints of God.

As a child, my Dad always took the time to tuck me and my siblings into bed. He’d say our prayers with us, and sometimes, he’d lie down beside us in an attempt to convince us to go to sleep. Moments later, we’d be giggling as we’d hear him snoring before our eyes even closed. I once overheard another adult complaining that it was rude that my dad would take five or sometimes 20 minutes to put us kids to bed, even when they had visitors. But to a kid, this was evidence that we were well worth my dad’s time, that we were loved unconditionally. And now, years later, one of my favorite moments of each day is putting my own son to bed, saying his prayers with him, and giving him the gift my dad gave me. It’s in these little moments, when Caleb is “blessing” all his friends and family (and sometimes even his wooden trains), that I often sense God’s presence. This bedtime routine can be transformed into a time of worship – a time when my heart swells and I’m conscious of God’s great love.

I have a tattered, tiny little book called The Quotidian Mysteries: Laundry, Liturgy, and “Women’s Work” based on a lecture given by Kathleen Norris. In this work, Norris shows us how daily tasks that can often seem ordinary and dull have the ability to be spiritual acts of worship. She writes, “The Christian religion asks us to place our trust not in ideas, and certainly not in ideologies, but in a God who was vulnerable enough to become human and die, and who desires to be present to us in our everyday circumstances.”

I’ve come to realize that it isn’t just preferable for me to meet God in life’s everyday moments – it’s necessary. If we relegate God to only specific, formal “spiritual” moments, it’s very difficult for a personal relationship to grow. We can’t become best friends with someone by spending one quiet hour on Sunday mornings sitting in a pew – genuine and meaningful relationships are formed in the ups and downs of everyday life.

Maybe I should stop imagining if someone would walk into my house and offer judgment about what I’ve accomplished on any given day, and instead, know that Jesus is already there (and he’s not real concerned about the dirty dishes).