When Your Work Feels Small, Remember This

I was sitting at my desk, staring at the screen, cursor blinking. Another email to write. Another design to tweak. Another meeting to prepare for. And in that moment, a question settled heavy on my heart: Does any of this actually matter?

Maybe you’ve asked the same question. Maybe you feel like your work—whether it’s spreadsheets or sermon slides, customer service, or coding—is just a series of small, insignificant tasks strung together by caffeine and deadlines.

But let me tell you a story.

A graphic designer once wrestled with this same question. She loved creating and loved the way colors and shapes could communicate beyond words. But was it enough? Was she really doing kingdom work or just making pretty pictures? One day, she found out. A missionary she had never met told her how a single poster she designed had sparked gospel conversations in a closed country. People who had never heard the name of Jesus were asking questions—because of a design she had nearly dismissed as “just a project.”

She wept when she heard that because God takes what feels small and makes it eternally significant.

Your Work Is Not Wasted

The Bible is full of people whose work seemed unremarkable—until God used it for His glory. A shepherd boy with a slingshot. A fisherman with a net. A widow with a handful of flour. They weren’t influencers, CEOs, or best-selling authors. They were ordinary people with ordinary work. But in the hands of an extraordinary God, their work became part of a much bigger story.

And so does yours.

Paul reminds us in Colossians 3:23-24, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.”

That means the spreadsheets, the emails, the late-night edits—they matter. They are acts of worship when done unto Him.

The Gospel in the Mundane

The enemy wants you to believe that it isn't faithful if your work isn’t flashy. That if you’re not a missionary overseas, your job isn’t ministry. You're not making an impact if you don’t see immediate results. But the gospel says otherwise.

Jesus spent most of His life as a carpenter before ever preaching a sermon. His ministry didn’t start with crowds; it started in the quiet, in the unnoticed faithfulness of daily work. If the Son of God saw value in seemingly mundane labor, how much more should we?

So, to the one designing church graphics, balancing budgets, and writing content no one may ever read—God sees you. And He sees your work. And in ways you may never realize, He is using it.

A Challenge to See Differently

Next time you sit down to work, pause. Ask God to open your eyes to the kingdom's impact on what you do. Ask Him to use your hands, your mind, and your creativity for His glory. And then, press on.

Because when your work is surrendered to Him, it is never small. It is never wasted. It is worship.

And that matters to Your Creator.