Summary: 1st Corinthians 15:58 says, “Nothing you do in the Lord is in vain.” If you are in ministry, you know the bizarre cornucopia of tasks that seem to have no direct bearing on the Gospel. The people of the church will likely not know the extent to which we labor and strive in ways unseen. Can your heart be filled with worship as you operate in the mundane?
I want to introduce you to a word that I made up: Administriva. Yup, I made up a word. This made-up word is a combination of Administration + Trivia. The Ministry is FILLED with often trivial administrative tanks. Hence the creation of a new word, Administrivia. I was blown away at the number of random and less glamorous tasks that I found myself joyfully doing.
There is a wonderful verse that I embraced early on in church ministry. 1st Corinthians 15:58 says, “Nothing you do in the Lord is in vain.” This small portion of scripture was a wealth of encouragement to me. Naively, we might think that the mundane and behind the scenes items are necessary but lame. I want to challenge this thinking. If you are in ministry, you know the bizarre cornucopia of tasks that seem to have no direct bearing on the Gospel. We can, at best, mindlessly do these tasks, or at worst, resentfully do these tasks. We can be frustrated as we engage in the “Administrivia” of ministry, only thinking that certain things are “Truly Ministry”.
Folks, this is not true. It is all ministry. Nothing you do in the Lord is in vain. Couple this with “Let all you do be done heartily, as unto the Lord.” The people of the church will likely not know the extent to which we labor and strive in ways unseen. Can your heart be filled with worship as you operate in the mundane? Can you be a walking altar of incense as you engage in the administrivia of your week? Remember, “nothing you do in the Lord is in vain”.