The Devil Speaks

The devil has been speaking to me lately. He has been whispering lies into my ears. You are not doing a thing with your life. He says this to me as I wake up in the morning, sometimes right after 9 o’clock. So this is what you will do with two degrees in theology? He tells me this as I get dressed and head into work at the restaurant. So this why you spent all that time working on your sermon writing and delivery? He tells me this when I am telling guests about a special fish or drink.

The reason I know this is the devil speaking to me is that these are all lies. Every single one of them and a thousand more. He mocks my decision to move across the country, following the call of God which has me, at present, waiting tables thirty-five to forty hours a week and volunteering in a local ministry.

The devil reminds me of the time when I was 18 and getting my first opportunities to preach, playing baseball, and pretty much living as easy as I will ever have it. He reminds me of my last two years in college when I was teaching regularly, albeit to a small group of students. And the devil tells me that my days waiting tables are abject wastes of my time.

The main problem is that I believe him nine times out of ten.

Satan knows which note to play for me, to lure me out of faith in Christ into the grayish area of unbelief. If he can convince me that the mundane events of my day are meaningless, he can bring me to self-pity. If for a minute I agree with him that my job is inconsequential, he can draw me out of a place where I trust that God has good intentions for my life.

The devil plays the same chords of pride over and over again in the soundtrack of my heart. Maybe he does the same to you, convincing you that the every day mundane activities of your life do not matter. Maybe he has you convinced right now that the minutia of your life is keeping you away from constant contact with, reliance on, and faith in Christ.

Those are lies.

God is so intimately concerned with us that he makes every moment come under his good authority. All of our lives are lived in the presence of God. He is there when you get up early and go to work, whether that will entail nailing shingles on roofs, selling drills, waiting on tables, counseling the hurting, or preparing to preach on Sunday. All of life is lived in the presence of God.

And so he has me where he has wanted me since before he spoke the worlds into existence. He wanted me on November 10, 2010 to be preparing to wait tables for the next 5½ hours. He wanted me to tell others about the daily specials in a way that honors him. He wanted me to reflect his love, compassion, and glory by describing dishes of food and glasses of wine.

If we are really concerned with entrusting our lives over to God on a moment-to-moment basis, we have to be willing to be in the places he calls us. That may seem too simple, but it is not.

God has designed our world with great attention to detail. We need to nail shingles on because somebody needs a roof. And how will the roofer get his tools if there is not a salesman? And how will there be a salesman without a manufacturer? And who will manufacture what is not designed?

And at the end of the day, one of those people is going to need a meal. Every now and again, he is going to need a night to relax, be waited on, and to enjoy some physical fruits of his labor. God has me coming in here, now.

God may very well call me out of this job to what I thought I was preparing for, but you know what, maybe he won’t. And if I am really concerned with his kingdom and not my own, I will accept this gift with a thankful, believing heart.

The devil will continually woo us out of dependence on the will of God whether it be through pride or shame. Let us stay alert, looking at all times for His presence, will, and good pleasure in our daily tasks.