Right For the Job

The past few days at work I have had to endure a job that I very much disliked.  And yesterday was the culmination of all of the preparation I had done.  I was responsible for cutting into a large water main and installing a valve for a new client's landscape irrigation system.  The past two days involved locating the main from the plans, digging it up (it was 4 ft. deep), purchasing all of the parts, and cutting into it.  I had contacted the company that manages the property to inform them of my plans and to obtain the information about the valves that would shut off the water so that I could work in it.  Well, I shut the valves, cut the line, and then waited for it to drain.  It drained for over 24 hours and was not about to stop.  So, the managing company sent a guy out o help me shut off the entire system.  After he did I was able to finish my job, which was the part I was dreading.  That was, to jump into this huge, muddy hole and begin to clear the mud so that I could plumb my valve in.  Let's just say that I was not a happy camper!

I didn't have a bad attitude; I just didn't want to do it.  It was dirty, wet, and tough to do.  But, that is what my employer pays me for.  He calls for me when the job needs to be done in a certain manner and trusts my work.  That is the reputation that I have established with him.  It makes for many of my jobs and projects to be less than enjoyable.  However, he has entrusted me with some of his most delicate work issues knowing that I will come through for him.  When the job needs to get done, I am the man for the job.

You may be wondering, "How is this work story connected to marriage and standing for them?"  Let me explain...

Most of us started our married lives in relative peace in our relationship.  We expected life to be roses and perfume all of the time.  We were going to be like marshmallows and hot chocolate, peanut butter and jelly, or peas and carrots all of our days.  No bad would befall us because we LOVED each other.  It's why we got married, right?

But, that's not how life turned out, is it?  The roses turned out to have more thorns than you imagined.  You got hurt by your spouse.  You hurt your spouse.  I hurt my wife.  I nearly derailed my marriage.  Life got ROUGH!

Now, if you believe that nothing is chance...that everything has a purpose...that God has been orchestrating and choreographing your entire life....each and every moment He has known about and taken into consideration, then you have to realize that even this crisis that you are walking through is by His design.  This is not to say that God made your spouse do what they did to you.  However, it does say that YOU, by His design, were the right person for this situation.

It means that He knew your unique make-up of traits, attributes, talents, and character would be exactly what He needed to make the difference in your spouse's life.  He knows your weaknesses and faults but is able to work through them and show Himself strong through them.  As ugly as the situation is or may get, you are not in it by accident.  There is something that God is desiring to do in you and through you by His grace.  You are the man/ woman for the job of YOUR marriage restoration.

Yea, I know....you don't want to do it.  I didn't want to have to do the plumbing work in that main line, either.  It's not fun.  There is little to no recognition for all the mess you have to put up with.  You feel mistreated and used.  You are overlooked and under appreciated.  But, regardless, you are the right person for the job.  When God saw the situation that was about go down, He saw you and said, "There you are; I have been looking for you.  I need for you to be who you are and endure this situation.  No one else can do it.  You are perfectly suited for this."

Now, at first glance, this may not appeal to you or seem to be encouraging.  But, I tell you it is.  Going back to me and my work, I get very frustrated sometimes when I think about the task at hand that my boss is asking me to do.  It is tough and, usually, exhausting.  But, when I step back and see that he gives me these job because he trusts me and knows I can handle them with integrity and faithfulness,  I feel much better.  God is not giving you the trial you are walking through because He dislikes you or has forgotten about you.  Just the opposite is true.  He HAS considered you.  He HAS thought about you.  He has bestowed trust upon you knowing that you will not let Him down by giving up.

Here is what the Word of God says about you...

Romans 8:28 We know that God causes everything to work together^[a] for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.

Psalms 139:16 You saw me before I was born.  Every day of my life was recorded in your book.  Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.

Job 1:8 And the LORD said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?

God needs you!  Your spouse needs you (even if they say they don't, they still do!)!  Be the right person for the job!

Josh