With long to-do lists at my desk, I have struggled at times to see my job as ministry. Here's how I find focus and encouragement.

By  , business & communications manager, Sherwood Oaks Christian Church, Bloomington, Ind.

My husband and I were on vacation. While at the NASA Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Ala., we read about a man named Wherner von Braun. I’d never heard of von Braun and was shocked to find out that he is considered, by many, to be the man behind the space program. Without his knowledge and team, rockets may never have made it through the atmosphere and into space. We owe so much to him, but I’d never heard of him. Sound familiar?

For many people who work in the church, what they do is seldom seen. We work hard behind the scenes to make sure that people are able to come and worship on Sunday. We spend hours and hours on a 30-second video to tell a compelling story. We cut out crafts, stuff mailings, manage lists, make coffee, sweep the floors, count the offering, manage volunteers ... but you may feel like none of it really matters.

But, it does! No matter how big or small your job, no matter how much you feel like it’s taken for granted or ignored - what you do makes a difference.

I have struggled at times to see my job as ministry. I spend the vast majority of my work-week in my office, working in QuickBooks or InDesign, proofreading, updating the website and managing incoming communications requests. It's easy to feel like my job is one that is less ministry and more to-do lists.

It’s when I start thinking like that I have to remind myself that my job is important and does matter. It may be behind the scenes, but it’s setting the rest of the staff up for success! And there is no greater joy than knowing that my little work can free other people up to do the jobs God has called them to more effectively. People don’t have to know my name. They don’t have to know what I do. They just have to know the One for whom I do my job.

Next time you struggle with whether or not what you’re doing really matters in the long run, remember these words: So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building. (1 Corinthians 3:7-9)

The promise is the same. We are all co-workers laboring for the same cause. No job is insignificant. We all matter. And what we do matters.