Meaningful Work

By Cynthia Ruchti –

“Meaningful work.”

That’s what I said over the phone when in conversation with someone who shared my rant over the four-volume to-do lists sneering at us both. Looking for a spark of hope in the murky fog of responsibilities, I cheered the caller with the line, “Our lists remind us we have meaningful work to do.” Nervous little laugh. Then came the soul-heavy recognition that the Lord had just spoken, not me. And not through me but TO me.

My mom’s final days on this earth, almost a year ago now, were marked by struggle and a pathological inactivity that often rose with a greater ferocity than her pain. She mourned her loss of strength and the steady decline of her ability to breathe, but of greatest concern was the loss of something meaningful to do.

She’d battled congestive heart failure and all…yes, all…of its complications for many years. She understood that physical activities would be sloughed off like dead skin cells. One by one, she gave them up—traveling, gardening, cooking, pulling her great-grandchildren into her lap. Eventually even reading—a great holdout of joy in her declining years—was taken in brief one or two minutes snatches before she tired.

Diligent to the end to pray for those she loved, for her church family, and even for her hospice caregivers, all other avenues of meaningful work disappeared. No to-do lists. No responsibilities except for the labor of breathing.

Not having more than that on her list broke her heart.

Reflecting on the depth of her disappointment, I’m thanking God today that there’s more than one thing waiting for my attention. A robust list. And whether today or tomorrow or next week, they’ll all get done, by God’s grace.

PRAYER: Lord, thank You for cheering my heart with this wave of gratitude. Even when the list threatens to choke me, it won’t. And it is evidence that You have given me an abundance of meaningful work.

“And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him” (Colossians 3:17 NIV).

Today’s devotional is by Cynthia Ruchti, writer/producer of THE HEARTBEAT OF THE HOME radio ministry and past president of American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW). Cynthia’s debut novel—They Almost Always Come Home—and “The Heart’s Harbor” in A Door County Christmas novella collection released in 2010. Cynthia writes stories of hope-that-glows-in-the-dark (www.cynthiaruchti.com).

Could This Be The Year?

By Cynthia Ruchti –

Fresh calendars are like an unquilted stretch of new snow begging for footprints. They tease with their crisp, unmarked pages, claiming that life won’t be messy and scribbled on before the year is over.

I’m old enough to know better, to realize that somewhere within those relatively blank pages are marks already—notes about an upcoming doctor appointment made months ago, reminders about tax form due dates, speaking engagements, deadlines…

The thirty-one open boxes under the stunning photograph of a lighthouse will start to fill before I take a step back to admire it. Church meetings. A family get-together. Worship practice (what an odd phrase! Practice for worship is…worship!). Birthdays I won’t remember soon enough to send a card. Garbage night. Phone numbers. Things that don’t fit on the to-do list.

When I take down this calendar to put up a new one next January, what story will these pages tell?

Will this be the year that I conquer my battle with—? It’s a multiple choice question.

Is this the year I stick to the discipline of—? Again, multiple choice.

Will this year be marked by lightning-fast obedience, divinely-appointed risk-taking, books read and written, regret-free living in relationships?

How many squares on the calendar will be filled with surprises, unexpected challenges, things I’d rather forget than remember?

Is this the year I won’t flinch when they come?

Although I regularly commit my day to the Lord, I don’t remember laying a whole calendar before Him. But it seems like a good idea, doesn’t it?

How can I move from block to block, three hundred and sixty five times, without His help? How can I hope to navigate that maze, dodging distractions and things circled four times and accented with exclamation marks if I’m not letting Him lead the way?

PRAYER: Father God, Lord of my life, early in the morning (and the year) will I rise up and seek You. I need You every hour, every block, every page.

“O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee… Because thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice. My soul followeth hard after thee: thy right hand upholdeth me,” (Psalm 63:1a, 7-8 KJV).

Today’s devotional is by Cynthia Ruchti, writer/producer of THE HEARTBEAT OF THE HOME radio ministry and past president of American Christian Fiction Writers. Cynthia’s debut novel—They Almost Always Come Home—and novella—“The Heart’s Harbor” in A Door County Christmas—released in 2010. Cynthia writes stories of hope that glows in the dark. www.cynthiaruchti.com.

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