Don’t Sweat the Ordinary

Black and white photo of ordinary bathroom items lined up on a counter: mouthwash, dental floss, a glass of water, and a supplement bottle.

“Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose trust is the LORD. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.” – Jeremiah 17:7-8

The overall theme of this blog is to be rooted in Jeremiah 17:7-8. Most of my topics will orbit around this scripture in one way or another. Obviously, my life is ultimately about glorifying Jesus by enjoying him forever, but I pray (almost daily) to live a life of faithful, joyful perseverance. That not only would I endure in my faith until my final breath, but that I would do well–bearing fruit 30, 60, and 100-fold.

I realize that the vast majority of this faithful service and perseverance will occur in the context of  the most ordinary parts of my daily life. Most days will be pretty ordinary and unremarkable as far as crazy, spiritual stuff going down. It’s not that I don’t still have high expectations for God’s power in my daily life, but even Moses had to come down from the mountaintop to be with those stubborn Israelites. In the Christian life we get glimpses and great moments of God’s presence or manifestation, but most of our days are just ordinary: flossing your teeth, taking multivitamins, getting the kids off to school, sitting in traffic, working, sitting in traffic again, dinner, homework, showers, 2 hours of spouse time, bedtime, and repeat. I get a few moments here and there throughout the day where I can get in the Bible, worship, and whistle-up a few prayers. Sure, time can be made to do those things for an extended amount of time, but some days (maybe a lot of days?) I just have to squeeze them in every chance I get throughout the day. There’s nothing too glamorous or “exciting” about any of that.

Now, I’m not using those necessary daily life activities as an excuse for a lack in zeal or joy or affections or missional work. As Christians, we ought to be joy-filled, Christ-exalting, zealous, walking-by-the-Spirit people. If we just settle in without expecting much in terms of God’s Presence in our ordinary, daily lives, we run the possibility of becoming kind of jaded or crispy. The other side of that is if we become thrill-seekers, it’s possible we could run out of gas; maybe not permanently, but at least for a time or a season–making us ineffective. I’ve just learned over time that faithful, Christ-following Christianity seems to happen within the context of our unremarkable daily lives.

The cool thing is that being a spiritual people in the context of our ordinary daily lives IS a result of God’s Presence in our lives. Even something as unglamorous as self-control is a fruit of the Spirit. This is where the real Christ-following occurs. It’s easy to be passionate and follow Christ when you’re on the mountaintop. Even unbelievers will bow and confess when they’re in God’s Presence on that day. The real tested genuineness of our faith is in the 98% of the time where life is ordinary, busy, and mundane. For the saved sinner, the Holy Spirit dwells within us. We may not look out the window at night to see a pillar of fire or be led by a pillar of cloud by day, but we actually get something better–the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

“Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God?…” – 1 Corinthians 6:19

As an aside, I hate that I have yet to be completely blown away by that fact. I don’t think I will ever truly get the gravity of that on this side of Heaven. So where am I going with all this talk…I’ve found myself getting frustrated lately about a perceived lack of God’s Presence in my life. I say perceived, because God is actually present. I just expect the walls to fall down every night, which isn’t unrealistic (I hope for it and expect it), but  whether those things happen or don’t happen every night, I must press on. Waiting. Hoping. Praying. I so desperately need His Presence! I made a recent trip back to Southern Illinois a few weeks ago and it felt like God’s Presence could just be turned on like a faucet. I had always heard that you can feel a discernable difference when you leave the Midwest in terms of the spiritual climate. It’s true. Some places are like deserts. I have to work 2-3x harder since living in Florida as far as cultivating God’s Presence in my daily life. I love it here, but it’s more work.  Nonetheless, I know Jesus will build His Church on the backs of ordinary Christians living ordinary lives. He has for centuries and he will until the sky rolls back as a scroll. I don’t mean ordinary as far as looking like everyone else, but ordinary as in working, eating, breathing, and sleeping. Stuff that everyone must do! But there will be many that come after us and come to know Jesus as a result of us paving the way through faithful service and prayer, in the context of ordinary life, day-in and day-out; if we don’t give up.

“And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.” – Galatians 6:9

Happy Easter!!!