Dear Friends,
“So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” 2 Corinthians 4:18 (NIV)
Church administration is full of the seen and unseen. We see the finished service sheet, the successful event, the well-prepared meeting and the church newsletter that arrives in people’s inboxes. But behind all of these are also countless things that may never be noticed: the emails sent, the details checked, the problems quietly solved, the conversations had, the people prayed for and the work that simply has to be done to keep things moving.
Two aspects of the above verse stand out to me: the things we do which go unseen by others and the challenge to keep our focus on what has true significance.
Scripture reminds us that the things we can touch, count and see with our physical eyes are only temporary. The struggles we face today, the affirmation we seek and the visible results of our work are all things that pass away. But our unseen work is eternal.
There are things we sacrifice for and put energy into that go unnoticed. There are things we invest in but never see the fruit develop. Perhaps you have spent time carefully preparing something that few people will ever realise took hours to put together. Or you have quietly dealt with a problem behind the scenes, so that others didn’t have to.
We can grow weary and start to think, “Why bother?” But the truth is, God sees it all.
I love the phrase, “God never lets anything go to waste.” It includes working hard even when no one else does or notices and it includes ceaseless prayers with a humble heart. ALL work done for God’s sake is good work, whether anyone sees it or not.
This is what we are called to do:
“...whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” 1 Corinthians 10:31
And:
“And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” Colossians 3:17
Our work is for God’s glory and fame, not our own. It is not for praise or accolades of man, but for our Saviour.
Much of our hard work may never receive recognition, but that does not make it insignificant. We work hard because Christ first worked for us. His holy, perfect and righteous work was given to us. His sacrificial work on our behalf at the cross paid the penalty we were due.
His work paved the way for all the work we do, seen or unseen, mundane or spectacular, boring or interesting, easy or hard. Because of Christ’s work, all our work is through him and for him.
So let our Saviour’s holy and sacrificial work for us be our motivation and joy for service and remember that God sees the hidden things.
In Matthew 6:4, we are reminded:
“So that your giving may be in secret. And your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.”
And in Matthew 6:6:
“But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.”
In 1 Peter 1: 8-9 we read:
“Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”
There is something reassuring in that for us too. We will not always see the impact of our work. We may not see the fruit of a conversation, a prayer or the end result of a task faithfully completed. But we can trust the One for whom we do it. Our calling is not to see everything, but to remain faithful in the things God has placed before us, fixing our eyes on Christ and trusting him with the unseen.
In His Name
Jen Swallow
UCAN Board Director & Manager Member
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