My work is His work.

A few weeks ago, God provided me with a job. While I take two online classes to finish my college degree, I’m also going to be doing home childcare part-time (a couple full days a week). I get to watch three little girls, five months to four years old, and teach them. I love babies and kids of all ages, so of course I’ll love it. I’ve been doing childcare off and on since I was eleven years old. In many ways, this job is actually perfect for me currently. It is an answer to prayer.

As I was preparing for my first day of my new job (tomorrow), I felt excited and nervous. It’s normal, I know. Similar to that feeling that builds inside your stomach right before delivering a speech to an audience, or the first time you’re about to do something new. I remind myself: the edge relaxes off the more you get used to doing it. Part of the nervousness is anticipation, the other is uncertainty.

This feeling continually has driven me to God lately. He has constantly encouraged me and used people who also pray for me to speak encouragement to me. I know I am not stepping forward alone; He is with me, and I am covered in prayer.

This morning His answer was so clear when I came to Him about it. He didn’t just say “Surrender” or “Trust Me” or remind me of a thousand other truths I need to hear over and over. He finally opened my eyes up to change my perspective.

All along, I’ve seen how this job was an answer to prayer. God provided, and it’s a huge blessing.

But there’s more to it than that.

As I’ve been praying and preparing, I’ve been looking at what I’m going to be doing as “my job”. I mean, that’s what it is- right?

This is more than a job. This, in fact, is not even about a job.

This is less about a job and more about the work. And what is my work? Is it simply feeding little mouths, cleaning up poopie diapers, playing, singing, teaching, and taking care of three little girls?

By definition, yeah, I guess it seems that is my job. I love all of those things! But my work is actually not simply defined by what actions I do. It is about the purpose behind those actions.

God uses my work to get His work done; God does His work through my work.

He uses a weak vessel like me to display His glory and minister His love. 2 Corinthians 4:7 comes to mind, “We have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.” The jar of clay is me; the treasure is His power which dwells by His Spirit within me. The end of that passage, in verses 17-18, talks about “an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison” is what God is preparing through everything we go through now, “as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.”

God leads us exactly to where He wants us to be and teaches us every step of the way. When we get there, He opens our eyes to see that what He has done is actually not about us at all. It’s about His will, His purposes, His Kingdom…it’s all about Him. It’s not about the temporary, it’s about the eternal.

Already, in the time I have spent with these sweet little girls, I have seen the unique beauty God has placed in each one of them. They are created in His image and He has a plan and purpose for their lives. I may only be a part of that for a time, and even if it’s the very beginning, they are cherished and loved in His sight. I get the chance to show them that. I get to teach them about Jesus and demonstrate His heart toward them. And my greatest hope is that God will use in their lives for eternal purposes that last beyond my close presence in their lives.

I was worried for a little while about failing somehow. I thought, ‘what if I didn’t know what to do?’ or, “what if I screw this up?’ – and how terrible I would feel if that did happen. God wiped away that fear, but He didn’t stop there; He has given me a whole new perspective and heart about this. I can’t even approach it the same.

I believe every life is a miracle, and that God is the breath of life to everything that has life. He’s our Creator. He knits us together in our mother’s womb; He created our immost being. He saw us in the secret place, where He made us. He made us fearfully, wonderfully. Before even one of our days came to be, He ordained all of them. (Psalm 139:13-16). God knows us intimately, and has loved us since the moment we once were a thought in His mind; from the first beat of our heart and enduring beyond the moment it stops. So no matter how young or old a person is, if they are only five months or ninety-four years old, the second greatest commandment Jesus gave us was to love others like He has loved us (Matthew 22:37-40, John 13:34). That’s the greatest hope I can have in anything I ever do, that I would pour out the love of Christ to people. We were made for a love like that.

It seems too simple, too poetic, that the point to all I ever do in this life is to love… but isn’t that the point of life? Jesus lived to love. His existence on earth was because of God’s love (“God so loved the world, that He sent His Son…” John 3:16). So God is sending me, in love, to love. And a lot of times, showing love is in the mundane, everyday, simple things; it is in our work, our sweat, the things you do not because they are in that moment beautiful or attractive to you to do, but because you do it in love.

Any job I’ve ever done, I haven’t wanted it to simply be a job. I’ve asked and I’ve sought God; what is my part in being here? What do You have me here for, what is the work You’re doing by placing me here? And it always comes down to love. First, for Him-because everything we do ultimately is unto Him and for His glory, because He loved us and in response, we love Him with all we are and all we do. And second, to share His love. Because once we understand how desperately our own hearts need Him, and how wonderfully He satisfies like nothing or no one else can, it is nearly impossible to keep that contained from spreading it to others.

It’s getting late, and I’m rambling at this point, but I guess I’ll finish with one last thought.

The blessing of my job is not simply how perfectly it fits me, my schedule, what I love, my experience, etc. That’s just God’s goodness and provision in my life, and it is a blessing, but the greater thing to treasure about it is that I have an opportunity to love three little girls with His love. As much as I want to do well in every area of taking care of them, I won’t fail if I seek to love them with God’s heart for them in everything I do. Amidst the Winnie the Pooh stories, heating up bottles, going through the alphabet to the tune of “Who let the dogs out?” (don’t ask, lol), pools and drips of drool, and hanging out with our stuffed zoo animal friends, I get to pray with them, teach them about Jesus, sing praise, teach them about character and show them about love.

In fact, the blessing itself is not even what I get to do. The girls are the blessing. Loving them isn’t ‘work; they are precious and worthy of love and Jesus loves them. Love comes freely when you are able to look at people how He does. “Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a blessing” (Psalm 127:3). Although they are not my children, they are being trusted into my care, and the greatest way to care is to love a person through the eyes of their Creator.

They may ‘just be little children’ but Jesus loves them! He said, “Let the little children come to Me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 19:14).

Not only all of this, but I also know God will do a work in me; He’ll continually grow and teach me along the way. I’m so humbled that God would use me to do this ‘work’ which is truly such a joy. We live to seek His kingdom and righteousness first (Matthew 6:33), and it’s found everywhere we are when we realize the work we do is His work.

When we focus on His work in our work, it becomes an indescribable joy.

We leave the place of striving and find a place of rest and overflow from His heart.