May 2021

Tom used to say that he really knew how to do nothing. It wasn’t that Tom was lazy, but rather that he excelled at doing NOTHING. Tom could, for days at a time, do nothing. Really. This is not hyperbole. Tom had a gift for this. And you know what?  God used that gift in way that was extraordinary for you and me. 

Say what?!?

Day after day, month after month, year after year, Tom did the ordinary “nothings” of life.  Each day was pretty simple and straightforward.  Tom taught God’s word and God’s truth to you and me. Tom was steadfast. Tom was consistent. God used this special quality of Tom’s – the gift of being able to remain content and joyful in the midst of the mundane, routine, and seemingly inconsequential moments of life – to teach, explain, and most importantly, to demonstrate God’s love for each one of us.

Think about that. In today’s world of instantaneous everything why would God choose to slowly and steadily woo people to Him through an ordinary guy living an ordinary life? Why not just find some influencers with millions of followers? There must be some gimmick to increase the open rate and convert followers faster. . . right?  Maybe God should just send a tweet?  That would be more efficient and effective.  Get on it!

God is patient.

It isn’t always about the racetrack or mountain top experiences, but rather, the day after day in the valley, in the minutiae, in the mundane. It’s the daily grind.  

God is right there with us.

It is in the boring, repetitive, simple daily routines – the vast majority of our time on earth – that we show the world who Jesus is. We demonstrate to the world that there is something better and someone who is bigger than all the brokenness, disease and pain. 

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)

Both salt and light are pretty mundane, yet, when used at the right time, they are extraordinary. God has us here to be salt and light - to share the hope and truth of Jesus.

Jesus is the way, the truth, the life. 

Several years ago, Tom taught a lesson on this from 1 Thessalonians 4:

1 Thessalonians - 11/27/11

It is in the everyday moments that we reflect His love, His grace, His truth to those around us.

Yesterday I had a tender afternoon with an old friend. She was worried about her husband who was having some tests run. It was a real conversation. These were real feelings. This was an ordinary exchange of words. Yet, instead of rushing, swiping through my phone, or moving on to the next ‘important’ thing, it was incredible to just simply sit, listen and share time with a dear friend.

Some might call it nothing, but I call it everything.

How about you? As you are heading back “into” life after COVID, are you making time for the small, unrushed, seemingly insignificant things of daily life? Are you flourishing in the ordinary nothings or standing back waiting to really “do” something?

As the saying goes, most of us overestimate what we can do in a day and underestimate what we can do in a lifetime.

I hope you’ll make time for the nothings.