“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.” – ROMANS 12:1
Recently, in our small group Bible study, we were discussing the things that keep us from giving our best to Christ. We unanimously agreed that the things that keep us from giving our best are not evil things – most are actually good things – and I think it was eye opening for many. How often do we fill our lives with so many things which are good that, together, they end up feeling more like a drain and a chore than something that is fulfilling?
I remember the year I was pregnant with Benjamin, pushing myself to the limit in every possible way to keep up with all of the commitments I had made. I was baking for a church bake sale and, as I took the chocolate chip cookies out of the oven, I promptly passed out and spilled all the cookies onto my off white carpet. I remember Bailey, my five year old daughter, looking down at me (as our dog was having a field day eating hot cookies off my carpet) and saying “Boy Mom, you sure made a mess here.”
In his book What You Do Best in the Body of Christ, Bruce Bugbee asks “Why are you doing what others can do, when you are leaving undone what only you can do?” How true that was with my cookie scenario? Would the bake sale really have suffered if I had taken a pass on participating in this activity? Somehow I had managed to take something I enjoy (baking) and turn it into a chore.
As Godly women, we also need to ask ourselves this question regarding our lives in general. When we take on projects (even good, worthwhile projects) it will take us away from something else. It’s just simple math…there are only so many hours in the day and only one you. God gave you certain jobs that only YOU can do. Being a wife to your husband, a loving child to your parents, a good mother to your children and, yes, He has gifted you and given you a burden for particular callings within ministry that only you can do. That doesn’t mean you have to participate in every single activity that comes along and it doesn’t mean that you have to say yes to every opportunity that comes your way.
These good things are particularly dangerous to us when we keep ourselves so busy doing “good things” that our relationship with Christ suffers. If we keep ourselves so busy that our prayer time and Bible study time suffers, then that good is keeping us from giving God our best. We need that alone time with God to seek direction for how we are supposed to be serving Him. That will lead us in ministry directions that will help us bear fruit for the kingdom because we are exactly where God wants us to be.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Janet Rose Campbell is an on air personality for a conservative news talk radio station in Lynchburg, VA. She also provides daily teaching devotionals for the Equip FM radio network of Christian stations. Janet travels and speaks to women’s groups throughout Virginia and the surrounding states through teakwoodministries.com. She can be contacted through janet@teakwoodministries.com.
