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Columba Chapel – Friday 3 September 2021
 
Video by Jennifer Macleod, Penelope Hare, Georgia Wong

'Doing the Dishes of Life'

Dr J Macleod —

When I was a kid, we had to do the dishes before we were allowed to go out to play. This pattern has become something of an extended metaphor for me. I think of it as ‘doing the dishes of life.’

No matter your age or your circumstances, life has its ‘dishes’ – the boring bits that we just have to do. And it is usually best to get these responsibilities out of the way before moving on to the things we like.

Some of you may feel we’ve been ‘doing the dishes’ for the last couple of weeks. And yes, this is a time when we have a responsibility and a task to do. But it’s not the whole of life.

As I was considering this, the thought occurred to me: I don’t think God gets bored. The psalm we’ve just heard (Psalm 19:1-4, 14) refers to the wonders of God’s creation – all the amazing things that God has made and the new things he creates each day. The psalmist goes on to write about God’s goodness and desire to teach and help us.

We are created in the image of God, created to show something of what God is like: to be creative, to help others, to enjoy the goodness around us. As we do the dishes of life, let’s remember the joy of creativity and the goodness of caring for others.