The Value in Doing–Lessons From a Banana

Did you see this picture in the news last year? It’s a banana duct taped to a wall.

That’s all it is.

Nope, really, there’s nothing else to see in that picture. Now, here’s an amazing fact about this banana duct taped to a wall. It sold for $120,000.

When I first read about this artwork that comes with “instructions” on occasionally replacing the banana with a fresh one, I probably laughed or scoffed. Really? It’s just a banana! Isn’t this making a mockery of true art?

Value in Doing

A few days after I saw the original news piece, I read a snippet of an article that made me think about it differently. It made me think not just about the banana, but about work, and art, and living.

People always like to dismiss modern art as simplistic, often remarking, “I could make that.” The go-to comeback to this statement is, “Yeah, but you didn’t.”

Yahoo Finance

I’ve thought about this for months. The argument is that there is value not in just the idea but in the execution of the idea, in putting feet to dreams, in trying something new and bold.

Qualifying Our Contributions

There seems to be two extremes in thinking about our work.

1. That is way too hard. I could never in a million years do what that person does.
2. Really? You can’t seriously call that [fill in the blank—art, parenting, working, writing, cooking, etc.] because anyone could do that!

There are definitely categories I would put in the first bucket right now. Running a company. Adopting a child. Being a nurse. There are more, but those quickly come to mind. The people who do those things are like super heroes. We all have roles and jobs in our heads that fit into that criteria, and I’m thankful there are others who have the gifting to fill those spaces.

But I’d like to speak to those who fall into the second camp when they think about their own calling and passion. The person who discounts her dream because she has devalued it, believing that she is not needed and others can do what she does with ease. The person who believes she isn’t doing anything praiseworthy because it all seems so ordinary and unspectacular.

A Lie Exchanged for Truth 

Growth and change comes when we call out the lie and replace it with truth. Here is some truth: the world needs you, your, work, your art, your efforts, your love, and your dreams. It matters.

"This is to the person who believes she isn’t doing anything praiseworthy because it all seems so ordinary and unspectacular. Here is some truth: the world needs your work. It matters." Share on X

How do I know this?

From personal experience, I can tell you that I have been both of those people. 

Lie: Who am I to write when there are thousands of other writers? The world doesn’t need another one, and someone else can do it better.

Truth: When I hold back the work I feel called to do, I’m withholding an offering of hope and help to the world, and the same is true for you too. I make that statement with all humility because I am only able to do what God has equipped me to do. That’s also true for you. Whether your offering touches 2 people or 200, it is the work God has put in front of you, and as I wrote last week, God multiplies our efforts for kingdom work when offered to him as worship. What is given in service to the Lord is never lost.

Lie: Who am I to feel valuable for wiping noses, slicing apples for little hands to grab, and singing the itsy bitsy spider on repeat? Anyone can do those things.

Truth: These types of tasks are endlessly valuable not because of the task itself but because of the person it touches. It doesn’t have to be an act of parenting. Buying a coffee for a co-worker, calling your mother, finishing your report early, or praying for your friend aren’t monumental acts, but that doesn’t mean the value to the person you impact isn’t monumental. 

Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

1 Corinthians 15:58

I hope you’re encouraged by this reminder today. In the mundane or in the far-distant dream, let’s walk faithfully toward them, knowing that our God is an equipping God. One who established good works for us to walk in.

After all, someone was just waiting to pay $120,000 for a banana duct taped to a wall. What is the world waiting for you to offer? I’d love to know in the comments.