The podcast focused on weakness and limitations which was something I was feeling every day. It piqued my interest.
Well, I’ve read the book and I wasn’t disappointed.
What was the main theme of the book?
Sara Hagerty uses the story of Mary of Bethany’s encounter with Jesus when she pours perfume on his feet to delve into the concept of worshiping and serving Jesus in ways that are often unseen and also misunderstood.
She talks through her experiences of going from a full-time busy job as a Christian youth worker to working in a virtually empty retail store and how she had to reconcile the concept of her identity before God now she wasn’t ‘serving’ him in the same capacity.
Yet this led to beautiful times spent alone with God, just coming before him and focusing on him rather than works.
Then through the process of becoming a mum to 4 adopted children, and what serving God can look like through loving children who have already had to suffer trauma in their short lives.
The main thread for me was the intimacy that she developed with God as she walked through hard things.
She wasn’t doing a role that earned recognition, and most of her life was unseen by others. But she was growing more and more aligned with her need to spend time with God and talk to him over everything else.
It made me yearn for a heart that sought after God more in my day-to-day life.
Who is the intended audience for the book?
Whilst the book focuses on those who spend a lot of their time in the background doing unseen roles, it would be a beneficial read to any Christian. Life circumstances can change and there are different seasons that we walk through.
Also, we might be able to better support someone else in that season after reading this book. And everyone will benefit from the reminder that we need to cling to Jesus above all else.
Why did I enjoy this book?
Entering motherhood is a big transition. I’ve found it a huge transition. Previously I would have described myself as capable, in control and adaptable. Now, I think the words that come to mind are limited, out of control and stretched beyond my capabilities.
I’ve come to see how much I really need God.
“My children didn’t ruin me. I was ruined long before they came along. However, my children did bring me into circumstances that God used to show me how weak I really am. Terribly weak, it turns out. I am no more ruined now than I was when life ran on time, the laundry was immeadaietly folded and I knew what to expect out of each day. It’s just that now I can see my ruination more clearly. I can see how much I need God”
And I’ve struggled with understanding how my identity changes when I’m not working when I can’t do much at church when I have to accept help rather than be the giver of help. How do I cope when I’m constantly feeling like I’m inadequate for the task at hand?
Reading this book was a reminder that actually, how others view us doesn’t matter.
It doesn’t matter.
What really matters is that God sees me and that I’m faithful to what He has called me to. Which for me, in this season, is being on maternity leave with my little one. It’s not been the maternity leave I thought it would be, but it’s been what God had ordained for me.
Serving God in this season is looking after my little one. Feeding at 3 am in the dark. Picking up pieces of egg off the floor. Washing stained clothes. 99% of what I do is behind closed doors that no one else beyond my family will know.
But actually, if I do this with a heart to serve Jesus and talk with him and ask for his help every hour of the day, then that’s what success really looks like.
“We want our work to be known and our impact to be memorialised. And it will be, but by God alone. No human can give us accolades that will satisfy the deepest longings of our hearts. We search vainly from others for the acclaim that only God can give.”
