When my oldest three daughters were little, I started giving them responsibility around the house. One day, I asked Kaytlynd to sweep the floor. I asked Karrissa to make the beds and Keirstyn to pick up the floor in her bedroom. I went downstairs to do laundry and when I came back up I found Kaytlynd and Karrissa doing what I had asked. Then I found Keirstyn picking up Barbies in the living room. The look of disappointment must have shown on my face because Keirstyn quickly said, “Well, the Barbies needed to be picked up too.” I looked at her and replied, “Yes, that’s true and picking up the Barbies is a good thing to do but it’s not what I asked YOU to do.” I had this job in mind for someone else. While you’re busily doing someone else’s job, your job will be left unfinished.
Then it sunk into my spirit. How many times, has God asked me to do something for Him but another need or task has captured my attention. There will always be many “Good Things” we can put our hands to, but are they “God things”? God may not have told us to do that certain thing. By us doing that, it may have taken someone else’s job and blessing from them. So we need to ask ourselves, “Is this what God asked me to do or is this just what I think I should do?” We can’t be moved by what we think is important or a need. There will always be more needs than you can ever meet. We cannot be moved by a need. We should only be moved by God.
At the time this happened, I had been busily planning our Communities World Day of Prayer. That year, it was our churches’ responsibility to put it on. I had planned it two times prior to this time and understood what needed to be done. I love prayer and this was a good thing to do. For some reason my heart was just not into it this year. I almost began to dread something that should be a blessing. Over lunch one day, I confessed it to a friend. She began to cry and said that she really felt that God had told her to take point on it, this year. I joyfully handed her the reigns. See for me, it was a “Good Thing” but to her it was a “God Thing” I could have done it and kept the job and blessing from the one that God needed to do it. That freed me up to do another job that I was totally excited about that God needed ME to do.
What has God asked you to do for Him?
Are you involved with “Good Things” instead of “God Things?”
Could this “Good Thing” be keeping you from assignment that God needs you to do?
Take some time and pray; ask God if you are doing what He wants. He will reveal that to you!