Making School Lunches
That empty lunchbox haunted me every single day!
Reference: Obil the Ishmaelite was in charge of the camels. Jehdeiah the Meronothite was in charge of the donkeys. (1 Chronicles 27.30)
Explore: It only took one week until I was bored of making school lunches. One of my boys started school and suddenly that empty lunchbox haunted me every single day!
A few weeks in to the first term I was at the school chatting to the teacher. We were discussing how well my boy had settled into school when she brought up his lunch box.
I thought my weakness had been discovered. She could see it in my eyes that I dreaded that daily chore, however her comment took me by surprise.
It seems my boy had declared loudly to the whole class, “Linda makes the best sandwiches ever!”
Who would have thought bread and vegemite could be done to perfection but it seems that I had pleased the person that it mattered most to. Now, every day when I make his lunch, although it’s still a little bit of a drag, I make it with the knowledge that it is greatly appreciated. And that makes a big difference.
Application: Unfortunately, life is not always filled with fun and frivolity. There are times when we have to prioritize the boring and mundane.
This does not mean that we are wasting time or not being good disciples. It gives us the opportunity to serve with integrity in everything we do. In fact, it’s how we approach the boring and mundane that really shows our true character.
Throughout 1 Chronicles 27 we hear of many great warriors. Closer to the end we hear about the lower jobs – those who manage the orchards, even down to those who look after the herds.
I wonder if they saw that they were less valuable than the mighty warriors. And yet they were listed in scripture so that we, thousands of years later, heard of their responsibilities.
I wonder whether they would have approached their job different if they knew that their names were in scripture.
God notices everything that we do. Maybe it would help us to live lives of integrity if we imagined that God was going to make mention of our lives too. It might help us to strive to do everything with purpose and a positive attitude.
Prayer: Lord, we often grumble about the boring things in our lives but every day we have an opportunity to represent you. Whether it’s making school lunches or running a multimillion-dollar corporation, help us to see that we are truly valuable to You. Amen.
How can you show integrity in your everyday?
This article was written by Linda Bailey
Linda started theological studies in 1999 in Australia. After working for ten years in various church ministries, she now works as the breakfast producer at 89.9 LightFM - the Christian radio station in Melbourne, Australia. She writes blogs every day about passages she is currently reading in the Bible. Follow her on Google Plus +Linda Bailey or Facebook by clicking the like button on the right of this page.