Tags
Related Posts
Share This
There are no small parts, only small actors.
When I first read this verse, I immediately thought of my pinky toe. Weird, I know. But when I think of weak and indispensable, my pinky toe comes to mind. C’mon…it’s small, it doesn’t bend on its own…you can’t even use it to pick up a pencil and impress your friends! However, if you have ever injured your pinky toe, you probably came to a quick realization of just how indispensable it actually is. Without it your balance is off and the other toes have to work much harder than they are used to just to allow you to take a simple step!
OK…maybe the pinky toe reference is a little too ‘out there’. Or maybe we just don’t like to think of ourselves as being compared to a toe. Let me try again:
Earlier, in verse 14, Paul writes that the body is not made up of one part, but of many. This reminds me of the way a play is constructed. Not only do you need an ensemble of actors, but you need set designers, stage crew, musicians, directors, lighting techs…the list goes on. If any one of those roles is not filled, a vital part of the play is noticeably void. Though most actors and directors get the accolades, the unsung heros are often the people in the shadows who work on make-up and hair, or the intern who made sure the musicians’ sheet music and lighting was in place before the opening song. Those roles are just as significant to the play as the more visible roles.
I think God wants us to give our all, regardless of our role. Even if that role is *only* picking up lunch for an elders’ meeting. Even if that role is *only* baby-sitting the 2-year-olds during VBS. Even if that role is *only* inviting a friend to come to church with us. Each and every role God puts us in serves a purpose. And not to belittle the more ‘presentable’ parts, but just because a role might appear to be better or more spectacular does not mean it deserves more praise or honor. It is my belief that God made us all to fill a specific role, and we should serve as if we were the starring role in a play.
Thank you Nicole. I couldn’t agree with you more. There are so many people who do so much for the Lord and we don’t even know it. They are serving the Lord in very special ways. No job is too little when it comes to God. He is in all the details. If anyone ever wants to see how much read the book of Exodus or Numbers. God wants us to be in all the details. So when we’re thinking I only do little things. Think again. God takes all those little details and puts them together to do His mighty work.
Nicole,
The pinky toe analogy was right on. I’ve broken mine on several occasions, giving me the opportunity to appreciate this verse, and to clean up my language. There are many folks serving inside and outside CCC that some could say are “only bit players.” If you ever get tempted to think that way, consider their service and where we’d be without them. If God gives them honor, why don’t we do it more? Maybe not publicly, because that might embarrass them, but how about a card? Maybe walk up to them and say “Thank you.”
Nicole this is a great reminder of the wonderful design of God. He has designed the world and he has designed his church. If we neglect any part the whole things will go badly. We are all of great importance in the grand scheme. This should cause us all to walk tall each day. If any of us are thinking we are of lesser value then come to the Spiritual Gifts Seminar starting March 9 and/or the Finishing Well Class if you are 45 or older starting March 8.
Nicole,
I too like the pinky toe analogy! You sure got me thinking and remembering no matter how small of a “job” you may be thinking you are doing for the Body it is sure making a difference! It makes me think of Alan mentioning Frank changing our kids diapers…what a blessing!!!
BTW I love nothing more watching Eli dancing in the middle of the aisles on Sunday morning, playing his “guitar!”
Thanks for the great reminder my friend!
Nicole, thank you for reminding us how important it is for each part of the body to work together.
My prayer is this: Jesus, help us to love you and to find our perfect purpose in you. Help us to be content with who you have made us to be so that we will not worry about what our part of the body is. Amen
Nicole, I wonder if the pinky toe ever gets tired of being a pinky and wishes to be a big toe?
Maybe the pinky grumbles and complains (within itself, of course) about it’s dull existence and how nobody seems to notice or care. If so, I’m sure many relate to the pinky. I pray Jim’s prayer today and add, “Lord, help me to see the “pinkies” of the world and show love and appreciation to them.”
I often wonder if I have truly found my security in Christ. If I was secure in christ, then I could be content and happy being the pinky. It is when I am trying to find my own security, my own place in this world, that I can not find contentment. I struggle to be happy. I am the body part that God made me, and He will move me where and when he wishes. The freedom is knowing that he will no more thrust me into the fire, than I would throw my own arm into the fire. (electrical accidents excluded) But God’s “body” is not a pampered body, it is the body of a warrior. Tried and tested, trained to persevere and overcome. Bruce Lee would thrust his hands into buckets of sand and gravel to make them strong. God is preparing his body for battle. Even the pinky toe.
Nicole: As expressed above by others, your image of the pinky, and how it fits–counterintuitively–into the proper workings of the foot and the body itself, is right on the mark! Your larger picture of the body working together as it was designed, in total harmony, is a good foil for the discussion today of the dangers of potential “division”–a potential for which we must be diligently “on guard”. Therefore, when I read it, I felt it necessary to carry your image forward into today’s journal entry on division, and I see this synergy as one more example of the gifts working together–supernaturally–for the benefit of the body. I looked up the word “synergy” to be sure of its exact meaning, and was amazed at the literal meaning, as being “The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects”, and in the sense of a large organization, the “Cooperative interaction among groups, especially among the acquired subsidiaries or merged parts of a corporation, that creates an enhanced combined effect”. Thank you so much for your insights, and I am in awe of the value of this new approach by Alan for us to participate and get to know each other by “Feeding Each Other” on line!!!
Not a day goes by that you do not amaze us….it’s impossible to say how proud we are of you and how much we love you……..you’re not only a great daughter, wife and mother…but a great human being……..LOVE YOU