Proud of a Job Well Done

I recently saw a waste management truck which had the following phrase proudly painted on each side of the truck in large letters, “We’re number one in the number two business!”

This waste management company specializes in emptying and cleaning septic tanks. For those who might not know, in some quarters of the United States, “number one” is a slang phrase for urination while “number two” is slang for defecation. In the phrase painted on the truck, the company is claiming to be “number one” at what they do.  (A different use of the phrase, “number one,” in this case meaning “the best.”)

What does this have to do with this Christian blog? Well, these people are very proud that they do an excellent job in this necessary occupation which is considered to be nasty and unpleasant by most people. Other people may not understand but they can be glad that someone does the job and does it well and proudly.

This is analogous to the Body of Christ. Not everyone is in a glamorous or respected position but everyone is necessary for the proper function of the Body of Christ.

“For the body is not one member, but many. If the foot says, “Because I am not a hand, I am not a part of the body,” it is not for this reason [a]any the less a part of the body. And if the ear says, “Because I am not an eye, I am not a part of the body,” it is not for this reason [b]any the less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole were hearing, where would the sense of smell be? But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body, just as He desired. If they were all one member, where would the body be? But now there are many members, but one body.” 1 Corinthians 12:14-20 (NASB: New American Standard Bible)

Not everyone is suited to be a medical missionary in a hot steamy mosquito-infested jungle. Those who are called are glad to do it.

Not everyone is suited to be a missionary among violent urban gang members. Those who are called are glad to do it.

Not everyone is suited to teach a kindergarten Sunday School class every Sunday morning for forty-three years. Those who are called are glad to do it.

The French Roman Catholic Nicholas Herman (1605-1691) is better known as Brother Lawrence. Though he shunned public life and lived as a lay brother in a monastery, he became known worldwide for his piety and his “practice of the presence of the Lord.” He cooked food and washed the monk’s dishes for God. When he became too feeble to run a kitchen, he repaired the monk’s shoes for God. Everything he did he did for “… God, who regards not the greatness of the work, but the love with which it is performed.”

"Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God." 1 Corinthians 10:31

Female Images of God: Maintaining Clothing

"Yea, forty years didst thou sustain them in the wilderness, so that they lacked nothing; their clothes waxed not old, and their feet swelled not." Nehemiah 9:21 In biblical times, weaving of fabrics was mostly a female occupation although there were men who were skilled embroiderers and engravers, such as Oholiab the son of Ahisamach (Exodus 38:23).  The fabrics were linen, flax, and wool.

What Is That in Your Hand?

"And the Lord said unto him, What is that in thine hand? And he said, A rod. And he said, Cast it on the ground. And he cast it on the ground, and it became a serpent: and Moses fled from before it." Exodus 4:2-3

Moses was carrying a rod used to lean on while walking, to steady oneself while climbing a hill, and to steer sheep in the way they should go. He used it in making his daily living but it was just a stick. God said to throw it down, basically meaning "give it to me." In God's hands it became a snake, made water come out of a rock, and cut a walking path for the Israelites through the Red Sea.

God wants us to give Him what we have and let Him use it. Moses' rod was basically his means of occupation. We can do the same with ours. The seventeenth century lay Carmelite brother, Brother Lawrence. was a cook and shoe repairer who attracted worldwide attention because of his insistence on living a Christ-filled life, cooking for Christ and repairing shoes for Christ. He turned his occupations into a witness.

We may be prevented by employer policy from "proselytizing" at work but we can provide a witness by our competence, honesty, diligence, and perseverance. Christians should stand out as different. We really are different.