Note to Self: Invite God to be Present in My Daily Life – Even the Mundane Parts

I admit that for too long I compartmentalized my life: that part where I met Jesus and that part where I lived the rest of the time. Generally, the two did not overlap or intersect. Christ was present in the ‘spiritual’ part of my life — my prayer life, my Bible study, in the worship service at church, my small group, and my ministry work. But the everyday stuff was not ‘spiritual’, it was mundane; it was ‘life’, and I did ‘life’ on my own, apart from God. I am talking about tasks like mowing the lawn (honestly, my wife mows the lawn), fixing a leaky toilet, painting the side of the house, raking the leaves, taking out the garbage, even engaging in a hobby. You know, some of the thousands of tasks that comprise our lives each day.

I have written that in-Christ means to be in the sphere of His activity, presence, and power. In other words, to be in the Kingdom of God — the ‘place’ (or Kingdom) in which Christ rules as King. One good metaphor for the Kingdom of God is a well-watered garden like that described in Isaiah 58 or the Garden of Eden or the New Jerusalem in Revelation 21, 22. God’s ultimate purpose is to restore or remake the earth back to this original Kingdom where He walked in intimacy and friendship with mankind – a spiritual Kingdom that has an earthly expression.

But I think there is another dimension to the Kingdom of God.

Jesus tells us “the Kingdom of God is within us” (Luke 17: 21). Rather than me entering the presence of the King, like me spiritually entering the Holy of Holies or His court (Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere, Psalm 84) or His garden, Jesus enters into my heart when I invite Him in. And when I do, He brings His Kingdom with Him. Wherever the King is, there is His Kingdom. Among the many ways Jesus can enter my heart – and one way I usually overlook — is for me to invite Jesus to be a part of whatever I am doing. This means that I invite Jesus to join me in raking the leaves, washing the dishes, reading to my grandchildren, or taking out the garbage. In fact, in my experience Jesus loves and desires to be a part of the everyday routine in my life. I can invite Him to join me in each individual activity as I perform it or I can invite Him to join me throughout the day even before I get out of bed. And each invitation is a prayer “Jesus join me” or “Jesus help me”. These are short prayers, but they can be very powerful. And they are a form of praise and thanksgiving, even worship, acknowledging that we have a Savior who desires this level of intimacy.

Here is an example. I owned a sailboat with an in-board diesel engine. As diesel-engine owners know, a diesel is relatively simple — it mainly needs clean fuel and clean air to run smoothly. Clean air isn’t generally a problem, but clean fuel can be. Some diesel fuel is contaminated with water and particulate matter. Both can be ‘deadly’ to a diesel engine. So, every sailboat should have at least one fuel filter between the diesel tank and the injectors on the engine. My boat had two filters — one on the engine and another one upstream of the engine filter.

To make a long story slightly shorter, I needed to replace the factory- installed filter (not the engine filter, the other one) on the boat. While not complicated, this job can get messy if you don’t carefully handle the disconnected fuel lines. Diesel fuel is very smelly and the inside of a sailboat that smells like diesel can get a lot smellier if you are offshore in choppy seas (smells can contribute to seasickness). So, it is necessary to do the job systematically and carefully.

I bought all the parts, planned the installation, and drove down to the boat on a Saturday morning. As I was driving to the boat in Galveston Bay I heard the Lord ask if He could be a part of the work by joining me in this project. I didn’t hear an audible voice; I sensed this request in my spirit or heart. Still, it was a clear (at least to me) word from Jesus. My first thought was “God, don’t you have more important things to do”; He said “No”. He is God, sovereign and knowing everything at the same time, but He made it clear that it would give Him great pleasure, delight really, to be part of the work.

Of course, I said yes – “Come on, Jesus. Let’s do this together.” And that is what happened. I felt His presence in every step of the installation. Not quite the sense that He guided my hands. Rather, there was a peace and a certainty as I did each part of the installation; if flowed, without any anxiety. The job was done right the first time, a record for me; neatly, and cleanly. When it was done I looked at the new fuel filter bolted onto the bulkhead behind the engine with the fuel lines running smoothly and bundled up neatly and I thought, “This is beautiful”. I had a strong sense of a job well done – ordered and organized. And a strong sense of God’s Presence; His pleasure and enjoyment. What a blessing that time was to me, and I think to God as well. And I know, looking back on that day, that God and I joined ‘forces’ in the Kingdom of God to install a diesel fuel filter. Crazy!! And some would say foolish — with all the problems in the world, why worry about something as meaningless as a filter?

I have learned that this is God’s way. Jesus is interested in being a part of every type of work, every word, every thought, in every minute of our lives. Generally not to command or take control, but to bring righteousness, beauty, efficiency, and order to all that we do. When God joins us in everyday work He brings His gifts, experience, and protection to the task. The task proceeds more smoothly, the work is done more expertly, and we learn more about that job no matter what it is — raking leaves, teaching a class, or cleaning the bathroom. This is just as much the Kingdom of God as entering into the Holy of Holies; this is another way to release the Kingdom of God into the kingdom of the world. I guess this is what scripture means when it tells us that we are God’s dwelling place and God’s Spirit lives within us.

One more really important point. God asked if he could join me. It was up to me to give Him permission. He usually does not go where He is not wanted or invited.

That day on the boat I learned this great lesson: nothing in my life is too small or seemingly insignificant for God’s attention and Presence. He takes great delight in living life with me – all of it. He instructs, open doors, makes things happen that would never have happened without His presence and He protects.

I found this quote from ‘Faust’ by Goethe. I have carried it in my bible for years. It speaks of committing oneself to a task. I have changed some of the words slightly because I think that to commit oneself is related to asking God to partner with me in that task. Here they are:

“Until one is committed, there is a hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative and creation there is one elementary truth, the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself and invites God to join in the work, then Providence moves too. All sort of things occur to help what would never have occurred. A whole stream of events issue from the decision, raising in one’s favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meeting and material assistance, which no man could have dreamed would have come his way”.

It is true that Goethe is talking about a more significant undertaking than washing the dishes, but the same principle applies to the small job as well as to the greater creative effort. When we commit ourselves to doing the job as well as we can, when we invite God to join us in it, all types of unforeseen blessing and assistance come our way. Things just seem to go right more times than they go wrong. When I get in the car to drive in Houston I often ask God for His Presence with me on the road. Many (really, many) times I have felt a small voice say ‘watch out’ just before I would have changed lanes into a car in my blind spot or hit a car or post as I was backing up.

But most importantly, when we make a conscious decision to open our hearts and minds to Him, we are ushered into His Presence. In His Presence we are always changed. In His Presence we experience the Father’s love, protection, joy, peace, and power. We are filled with the multi-faceted fullness of God. We are in communion with Him. My hands are washing the dishes or installing a fuel filter, my mind is focused on these tasks, but over all and through all of this God is present and has, in a way, sanctified my work by His Presence. It is not so much that I am doing the work to His glory, but as I do the work I feel connected to Him and enjoy and even celebrate His Presence and His friendship. That gives God pleasure and as most of you know, giving God pleasure is a wonderful feeling. Furthermore, this simple connection to God is the essence of prayer! Isn’t it strange to think that the simple act of washing the dishes can be a form of prayer?

I have come to see that no part of my life should be more holy than any other part. In the mundane, routine work of everyday life, I can be just as close to God as I am when I read Scripture or pray. The flip side of this is also true. When I read Scripture I can be just as far from God as when I am mindlessly vacuuming the living room carpet. I can invite God in or I can shut Him out. It is one thing to shut God out of something I know is ungodly – He can’t be a part of that anyway. It is another thing to close the door of my heart to God because I just don’t think about Him or believe that He is too busy to get involved in the simple, mundane thing I am doing that moment.

God wants all of me – all of my attention, love, affection, and friendship. He wants all of my time. He is a jealous God. But He is good and, incredibly, He wants to be friends with me. And that is what friends do – they care about the small, seemingly insignificant areas of our lives; they are always there in times of trouble and need. “What a friend I have in Jesus.”

“I have set the Lord always before me. Because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken” (Psalm 16: 8 NIV).

Grace and peace,

John