“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 2:10.
Reflection: what are these “good works” that God has prepared for us?
It really bothers me when you ask a friend or colleague to meet for a coffee or a chat, and the first thing you get back is “let me check my calendar”. And you might get squeezed in somewhere when Microsoft Outlook says it is convenient, when you “fit in.” Don’t get me wrong, I do like Microsoft Outlook and use it all the time to help organize my day. But it seems like with all these great technologies we have, we can easily lose sight, lose control of the important moments in our lives.
My wife and I were at Reasor’s the other day to get some groceries. I went to the deli counter as I typically do, and the woman behind the counter looked exhausted. I asked her “how is your day going”? Some people put on a smile, and say “good”. But she didn’t. She said “not so good”. Of course at that moment, I had a choice- to probe further or to just let it go and move on. Clearly was none of my business. Or was it? Something in me nudged me to slow down. To ask further about what was going on. And I think she recognized that I actually cared, wanted to hear her story. So she started sharing, for probably 10 minutes, the tough situation she was in.
There is one aspect of Jesus ministry that I am so amazed about when reading – how in the world he found time to do everything he did. Let’s read a story for context. “Soon afterward he went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a great crowd went with him. As he drew near to the gate of the town, behold, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow, and a considerable crowd from the town was with her. And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her and said to her, “Do not weep.”” Luke 7:11-13 ESV.
He had a large crowd following him, perhaps hundreds of people, all listening and wanting something from him. As they were approaching the gates of Nain, Jesus sees this one woman and stops everything, to talk with her. This woman suddenly became his priority, he had compassion on her. She was his focus. Not the crowd. Not teaching in the synagogue or the town square. He didn’t check his calendar to see when he could fit her in.
And we read on what happened next. “Then he came up and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And he said, “Young man, I say to you, arise.” And the dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother. Fear seized them all, and they glorified God, saying, “A great prophet has arisen among us!” and “God has visited his people!”” Luke 7:14-16 ESV. An amazing miracle, raising this man from the dead.
But, if you think about it, the event seemed completely random. If we try to put ourselves in Jesus shoes for a moment, with everything Jesus had going on – saving the world, bringing the good news of the gospel to the ends of the earth, and less than three years to do it, our priority would probably not have fit this woman in. We might not even have noticed this woman. But that’s exactly what Jesus did. And this was clearly the Father’s will.
We see this pattern over and over again with Jesus. He used time for the unexpected. For the individuals. He was so “tuned in” to the Father’s will, to the opportunity of these moments that we easily could have missed. Jesus later gives a parable “He said therefore, “What is the kingdom of God like? And to what shall I compare it? It is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his garden, and it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches.”” Luke 13:18-19 ESV
We tend to look for the big things, that those are the good works God has prepared for us. But I’m afraid we often miss the moments that He has prepared for us. Because here Jesus makes this point about the Kingdom of God being like a mustard seed. Something seemingly small that can grow into something large.
Let’s keep in mind today that God works often in the “small things”. The mustard seed. A characteristic is that it will be something unplanned for us, and we have to stop what we are doing.
- God prepares the good work
- He even prepares the moment
- The Holy Spirit nudges us
- We just have to expect it and stop
- We have to be obedient and do it.
What good work moments has our Heavenly Father prepared for you today?