Jesus:: What is Sacred?

Have you ever used a label maker? It's a powerful, powerful thing. 

I have only played with one of these pieces of magic a couple of times and it is intoxicating. For the uninitiated, you type whatever you want into a mini computer and it spits out a shiny sticker with that word on it. 

Want to clearly differentiate between your containers of flour and sugar? Easy. 

Want to let the world know this plastic tote is filled with Christmas lights? Consider it done.

Looking to mark your laptop with your name, address and phone number? So simple. 

You suddenly feel the need to identify and label each and everything in your home or office. If you get carried away your life will look like the inside of a Richard Scarry word book. 

Thinking about the tantalizing power of the label maker has caused me to reflect on how I do something similar with the labels of "sacred" and "secular". By sacred I mean all things to do specifically with God, faith, Christianity, etc. Secular is everything else in life, like our jobs, family, errands, play, etc. 

What I've been wrestling with lately is how harmful these labels can be for living the kind of life that Jesus calls us into. If we believe that God created all things and Christ came to invite us to redeem all things, then what is secular anymore? This has been reorienting my daily life. 

Mowing the lawn is sacred work. Putting my boys to bed is sacred work. Talking to my brother on the phone is a sacred conversation, and not just when we talk about God and the church. 

I invite you to join the conversation about relabeling our daily rhythms as sacred and seeing that God is in the smallest of tasks and the greatest of challenges.