Little, But Not Small
Most mornings, I wake up before the rest of the family. It’s probably because I’m wildly disciplined and deeply spiritual. 😜. But there are occasions when I’ve gotten in late from traveling for ministry or simply had rough night’s sleep that I sleep in and they all get up before me. And often on mornings like that, I shuffle into the kitchen to make some strong coffee only to find that PR31 has already made it for me. Ahhhhhhhhhh. It’s the little things in life.
The old adage says, “Dynamite comes in small packages.” True. So do engagement rings. So do kids who grow up to president. Lots of big things and people look small at first glance. But this doesn’t mean that they are small. The person who designs and builds a skyscraper may look tiny in comparison to the building they build, but the truth is that there would be no “big” building without there first being a big dream inside that “tiny” person.
Old Habits
Many of us have a tendency to look at things (or people) which are small and think they lack value, or that they don’t match up to some others. But it would be a mistake to believe that size indicates impact or influence. We may look at a small business and think that it does not impact our community very much. We might consider a smaller church less impacting than a larger church. We may view the elderly widow lady down the street as not making much of a difference in our world.
The old saying which might apply here is, “Old habits die hard.” That is to say, our tendencies to underestimate what we consider small things or people can be difficult to overcome. At least until something or someone small impacts us personally.
Sometimes, it is a small group of people who make a huge difference… for example, the group of men who signed the Declaration of Independence. Sometimes it is a thank you note from a co-worker handwritten on a little yellow sticky note that gets us through a tough week and reminds us we are making a difference in someone’s life. Sometimes it is a batch of homemade goodies from a neighbor which brightens our day.
Seeing Significance
Jesus had a knack for noticing those the world around Him might have labeled as insignificant and showing just how impactful they really were. He saw a widowed woman giving her last two small coins to help others in need and said that her offering was more significant than those who had given way more money. He saw a child- whom most in His day and time would have ignored as not yet a person of value- and said that those who would like to be the greatest in the Kingdom of God must be like that child. He saw a community of people whose race was opposed to His as worth going out of His way to visit.
Small acts of kindness have amazing value. Small notes of appreciation make a big impact. People who don’t feel like they can accomplish much in life can have massive influence through the small touches of care and concern for those around them every day.
May we be those who check our attitudes about who and what is perceived as small to make sure we do not count them as insignificant. And may we never underestimate our own ability in some “small” way to make an incredibly big difference.
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