Ever gotten the feeling that your life is not as significant as you’d like to think it is? Recently I got that feeling in an odd way. Let me explain…
As of Thanksgiving Day 2006… I have been in the ministry 17 years. In those 17 years there have been a total of 884 Sunday mornings… 884 Sunday evenings… and 884 Wednesday nights. That makes a total of 2,652 times that I have delivered either a message or study to God’s people. Behind each one of those 2,652 presentations are multiple hours of study, reading, reflecting, writing, editing, and rewriting.
I have kept pretty much all the things I have preached and taught as files on my computer. In addition to all the things I have formally delivered those 2,652 times, there are also numerous topical studies, Sunday School lessons, answers to questions, and ideas for studies, messages, and even more things that I have yet to deliver. To say I have a lot of “stuff” that spans those 17 years is fairly accurate.
Now for the revelation about insignificance…
I decided to save all the “stuff” to a CD for back-up purposes because I didn’t want to lose all that work. And you know what happened? All that stuff… the 2,652 formal presentations along with several hundered other things I’ve written and saved… fit on one CD! My life’s work (Which isn’t doodley) fit on ONE STINKING CD! With more room left on the CD than it took to save all my stuff!!
THAT was when I realized how insignificant I am. ONE STINKING CD represents thousands of hours of my life! ONE STINKING CD contained everything I’ve done in my life’s vocation and calling.
That one stinking CD can be held in one hand. One scratch on that CD renders it useless. If that one CD were lost, I would loose everything I’ve worked on for a great portion of my life. Compared to the rest of the world, that one stinking CD is absolutely NOTHING! It’s half a grain of sand on all the world’s beaches. Compared to the myraids of preachers & pastors this world has known… I’m nobody! Nothing! Zilch!
Now the revelation about significance…
Even though I’m nothing and my life’s work can be contained on one stinking CD, The God of the universe loves me and saved me from His wrath. Even though I’m nothing more than a speck of lint on a speck of lint in the universe… God adopted me as one of His children and one day I’ll be in heaven with Him forever.
What makes me significant is NOT that I’m a pastor… NOT that I’ve delivered thousands of messages and Bible studies… NOT that I’ve studied the Bible for countless hours… NOT that my name is Ron Ethridge.
What makes me significant is that God loves me. Period… end of sentence… end of thought.
And by the way… what makes you significant is not what you’ve done, who you are, the wealth you’ve accumlulated, the business you’ve built, or anything else you want to name. What makes a person significant is their relationship to God through His son Jesus.
Which do you most identify with? Significance or insignificance? The only significance that matters is that which matters to God.
Ron: I like your venture into blogs. I also took a look at Ray Pritchard’s site. I see what you mean! By the way, your story on significance is good for anybody reflecting upon their life!
Are you sure this picture isn”t Britton with a “fro?”
Love the blog.
Carmen