There's a plumber that has been to my home about three times within the past three years. The last time was a little before the pandemic hit and the first time he came I was at the time in a deep season of prayer. That day, he came to fix the sprinklers, but I never could have anticipated the shift.
He is a very serious man of very little words. I am assuming he is in his sixties. At first his demeanor though me off a bit, until I realized this enormous sense of peace coming from him. As he walked around and worked on the sprinkler, I was thinking to myself, this man knows Jesus. Each time, he came to explain something to me, he got a little friendlier and friendlier, but still very serious... and can I mention his dry humor? That man makes me laugh... What was also clear to me was that this is something he most likely does on every job. Yet yesterday in my weekly online sermon, that it all came together for me. the topic was peace and the Pastor mentioned that Jesus told his disciples to So its clear that not only was he a skilled plumber and business man, but his jobs were also his ministry. He knew his worth.
A lot of times when we speak of knowing ones' worth, we think of the monetary value or notoriety associated with our skills and gifts, However, there is another value that we must honor, and that is our day-to-day walk. God has definitely shown me this over the years. For instance, when I wrote my first book, I sent it to a few people and friends and they gave their feedback. Overall, the response was good. I remember also after it was posted on Amazon, most of my responses would come by email, especially after I did one of those free book offer days. Women from all over would write and tell me how much they relate to my story. At first, I would thank them and engage in a little exchange and then kindly ask if they would leave a review for the book on the page. I did it about three times and then one day I felt something within me saying, "Stop that! That book was not given to you for your own recognition, it was given to you to help other people." And man, did I learn, because I am not going to lie to you, my head started to swell a bit and I did loose sight of why the book was written. God showed me a level of humility to which I am so grateful for today. Now this is not say that people who have written books and have recognition, especially Christian authors, are not humble. For I am sure many have paid their dues and earned God's trust to carry out His mission. However, not everybody has a call to be highly recognizable. It doesn't mean that one person is better than the other, but your call is your call and we have to be grateful for it regardless.
Yet, I know there are definitely times when people don't operate quite at the level where God wants them to be due to fear, etc... but we are living in a time when we think that people are not doing anything worthwhile unless they are appearing a certain way. And I know a lot of times these people don't necessarily mean any harm. I've learned that sometimes we tend to put a pressure on others that we would put on ourselves, which I get. I definitely have had my fair share of judging others based on my own vantage point.
However, the only appearance we need to concern ourselves with is God's unique path for us. What you need to be assessing every now and then is whether there is truly progress every time you place one foot in front of the other, because the goal is to keep pressing forward. Also, never forget that our actual journey of developing a personal relationship with God is very priceless— for that is where you will discover your true value. In fact, there are so many ways to help people if that is where your heart is... people do it everyday. I have learned that just your very presence and every time you speak to someone is an opportunity to accept the call.
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