Scrubbing toilets with a toothbrush

Alright, parents.  Remember assigning duties to your children, like cleaning their room, doing their laundry, washing the dishes, et. al.?  I’ll admit, I wasn’t the most consistent at this one, but it is an important part of parenthood, regardless of the amount of grousing that can take place.  Cries of “Unfair!” can abound.  I mean, really, between cleaning the bathroom or mowing the lawn, I know which one I’d choose.  But the choice is made for them, and for good reason—no one should let the 6-year old mow the lawn and leave the 15-year old to pair up the clean socks. 

And yet…

Change direction (but not really).  Re: the continuing saga of the wandering Hebrews on their way to Canaan—the absolutely ornate meeting place known as the Tabernacle has been constructed, and like any tent, is movable by design.  Unlike my family’s camping tent, it took a little more planning to get it packed and going.  And for more reason that simply the amount of implements it stored.  This tabernacle was the representation of the Presence of the mighty God Who recently delivered the people from slavery, and has shown Himself as an entity not to be tampered with.  Truly, at this point in our history, a most dangerous Deity.

Why? Because holiness is a heavy burden to carry, and must be handled with care.  But no worries, since this God protected the people by giving them the proper instructions that, if followed, would allow for safety in their travels.  In fact, three clans within the tribe of Levi were specifically chosen to do just that.  Interestingly, they are also given specific levels of responsibility, and naturally, the highest level was the most dicey.

“This is what you must do so they will live and not die when they approach the most sacred objects. Aaron and his sons must always go in with them and assign a specific duty or load to each person….each man was assigned his task and told what to carry.”

Seriously, we talk about how each of us has an important part to play, and that is certainly true.  But let’s be real.  Some parts are scarier than others, and part of the scary is the level of consequence entailed if we screw it up.  Not that we’re on our own, indeed God gives us instructions, and power needed for the task, but in light of this example from the Old Testament, it’s vital for me to accept my assigned task, and not covet someone else’s. 

“For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.”

God must assign a special “load” to us, or we “die”, sometimes literally!  This doesn’t preclude our due diligence in discovering that load, yet with overarching humility and patience.  

Now then, how does this relate to:

• My job?
• How many hits on my blog site?
• How many books I’ve sold?
• Position of service in the church or community?

So very important to continue to strive for contentedness within the sphere of influence God assigns for me.  He has His reasons.

No, I didn’t take this photo. Thanks to samaraspeaks.wordpress.com

And if it’s scrubbing the toilets with a toothbrush, may they shine like glass.

 

Numbers 4:19, 49; Ephesians 2:10  Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.