Small Things are really Big Things

“The Kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard seed planted in a field. It is the smallest of all seeds, but it becomes the largest of garden plants; it grows into a tree, and birds come and make nests in its branches.” Jesus also used this illustration: “The Kingdom of Heaven is like the yeast a woman used in making bread. Even though she put only a little yeast in three measures of flour, it permeated every part of the dough.” Matthew 13:31-33 (also see Matthew 14:13-21) 

Observations: 

^{1.                 1. Ministry is a lot like planting a garden or field. It is also a lot like baking a cake or preparing a meal. If we look at it from both perspectives (bread, crop field) we are preparing spiritual food, in various stages, to present something edible that will enable others to feed upon and be nurtured and grow. From the discipleship perspective we are also hoping to help others become food growers and people feeders. Paul also refers to ministry (the church) as planting a field or building a building. 1 Cor 3:8-10}

He who plants and he who waters are one in purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labor. For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, God’s building. By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise master builder…

^{2.                2. There are several parallels when it comes to planting crops in a field, making a meal or building a building…a major one is that all three of them require having a plan (a recipe, a blue print etc) and sticking to that plan in proper order. It would be wasteful to water the field before the seeds are planted, it would be foolish to throw the icing into the batter and it would be ineffective to place a roof onto a foundation. It would be even more disastrous if you simply skipped a stage (like the time you forgot to add sugar to the cake mix!). There is an order, or a system, that must be followed if you are to bake a proper cake or plant a bountiful field! And most of the beginning and middle stages are boring, mundane, plain, simple, laborious and unenjoyable.}

^{3.                3. The first real major point I want to make is the double mention of small things being planted, or prepared. Most of the ministry we do, or the planting (building) we do for eternity, would be considered very small efforts. In a given day we are doing very little of apparent significance. Setting up chairs, tearing down chairs, moving speakers and projectors, unlocking doors and making coffee, stopping in to see a friend for 10 minutes at his work, visiting someone in the hospital, making message outlines, notes and power-points all seem incredibly insignificant. This seemingly daily insignificance has led me to become very frustrated in the past…and it still is a regular temptation to become frustrated and bored with the very little progress that appears to be happening. This frustration has led me at times to question whether my life/vocation was going anywhere or accomplishing anything eternal. This frustration has led me at times to take short cuts, or skip stages or by pass ingredients in an attempt to get the final result quicker and in the end it is only disaster. Even a 35minutes message on a Sunday can be seen as very insignificant because what, of major significance, can you truly cover, adequately, in 35minutes.  Even a soccer game is 3x that length! This frustration had me ‘shooting for the moon’ each time I taught…trying to accomplish 1-2 years of learning and steady conviction by the Holy Spirit in one 35minute session! And it simply won’t work that way.}

^{4.                4. The final major point I want to make is the double mention of these very small, insignificant, things becoming incredibly large and very significant things! In the end the very tiny seed that had been planted, became a massive tree that was a great benefit! In the end, the very little bit of yeast permeated the whole bread. Either of these things on their own are incredibly insignificant and not very beneficial at all…try finding shade or food in the form of a single seed, try finding fullness on a spoonful of yeast. If you look at Matthew 14:13-21 these same concepts are repeated when Jesus uses five loaves and two fish to feed 5,000 men, not including women and children. When trying to feed 5,000 men, only having fives loaves is incredibly insignificant. But again, the very small insignificant amount turned into a very large and incredibly significant thing.}

Conclusion: 

^{5.                5. Your daily contribution to the kingdom of God is ‘relatively insignificant’. In fact when you think of all of the other millions of faithful Christians who are serving the Lord and the millions of them who are more skilled or more gifted or have more resources or larger audiences, you could consider your daily contribution as basically unnecessary. This can be very depressing and for me, at times it has become debilitating. It can give you the impression that everything is trivial and insignificant. (This can also be a healthy thing so that you rely on God, because apart from him, we can truly do nothing! John 15:5)}

  

^{6.               6. It would be very awful to stay in the state above. Because the truth is that according to God, there is NOTHING OF INSIGNIFICANCE! Listen to what Jesus says about A CUP OF WATER in Matthew 10:42} 

And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones who is my disciple, truly I tell you, that person will certainly not lose their reward.

Jesus uses a doubly insignificant example: a cup of water given to a child (little one)…you can’t get much more insignificant than that. ‘Handing out the goldfish to the snot nosed, crying, nursery kids’ is essentially what Jesus is saying is significant and will be remembered by God and will be REWARDED BY GOD!  

Be encouraged, God is using your small things, your insignificant things, your daily commitments and unseen efforts to accomplish great things. Continue to be faithful in them. Wives, mothers, God is using all the small cleaning up of spills and humble service to your family and submission to your husband for GREAT THINGS! Husbands, fathers, God is using all the hours at work, all the lawns mowed, all the footballs thrown for GREAT THINGS! Pastors, teachers, God is using your faithful service, study, preparation and teaching of the word for GREAT THINGS…things you may never see the result of (on this side of eternity). Be faithful to the process.

Nothing done for God, in submission to God’s design, for his glory, is insignificant.

Everything done for God, in submission to God’s design, for his glory, is incredibly significant.

Disclaimer: 

It would be a mistake to conclude that we should be satisfied with the lesser tasks that God has given us to perform…since everything is eternal, weighty and significant in God’s eyes. It would be a grave mistake to think that since nothing is insignificant, that watching a football game with my lost neighbor is equal to and replaces getting up the courage to share the gospel with them. It would be a grave mistake to think that since nothing is insignificant, that the main ministry of the church, elders, deacons etc. is handing out water and snacks and arranging chairs. Discipleship and evangelism is the major task, and anything seemingly insignificant done in the aim of those goals is significant!

I have seen this lie creep in everywhere.

It is a great lie and trap. And many people are happily doing the easier, smaller, petty tasks and not going to the mission field, or sharing the gospel… because if everything is equal and significant why wouldn’t you simply hand out goldfish in America vs giving up a lot to hand out the gospel in Asia. So there must be a balance. Even Christ said there is 100x more reward for those who did the harder, more significant thing (Mark 10:30) and Paul challenges us to yearn for the greater gifts of service (1 Cor 12:31).  

For Graduates and the rest of us...

HIT THE RESET BUTTON OFTEN. 

We’ve all done it… we’re in the middle of a game of Madden or FIFA, everything is going great and then you throw a costly interception or give up a late game winning goal. Though angered and inconvenienced, no real harm is done, because you can simply lean forward and hit the reset button. I remember as a kid always saving my progress in a season of FIFA because I could go back to the beginning of a bad run of games and start over, right before it all went wrong. Maybe that was how I always went undefeated! 

Sadly, life is not like that at all. We can’t hit reset on a year, or a month in that way. We don’t get three lives like in Mario. This is the real deal—and our decisions are critical. But, we can hit the rest button on our attitude and outlook. And it is very important to have this power-tool in your arsenal each day.

One of the memories most engrained in my mind growing up was when my Dad and I were in the capital city in Ivory Coast. All my friends were away on an annual mountain hike and camp out…and injured from soccer I was unable to go. We went to the city as a replacement trip. One morning we were on our way to the highlight of the trip, the main reason for our time… renting jet skis on the coast. About half way into the hour ride we stopped on the side of the highway to take a photo. When we got back in the car I failed to fasten my seat belt…and an instant later the government soldiers flagged us down.  To make matters worse I didn’t have my identification card. It was a mess. Soldiers around us, AK-47s to boot, language and culture barriers, fear and frustration, two fines to be paid and a return trip all the way back to get my missing card…adding unnecessary time and cost. Tensions were high. I was mad that my Dad was mad. My Dad was mad that I messed up. We were both mad that this was going to cost us time and money. The ride back to where we were staying was long and no words were exchanged. The whole trip was ruined, because of 5 seconds of a lapse in thinking. It looked like the whole weekend was going to be ruined. We both were to the point of giving up, skipping jet-skiing and returning the 4 hour trip home. 

Then we hit the reset button. Though still frustrated and angry…we talked it out and the focal point of the conversation was that we both made mistakes and we both needed to agree to forgive, forget and start over. So when we pulled out for the second time to head to the beach, after collecting my card…we literally pretended that it was the first time we were pulling out. Though it was already midday and much time had been wasted. 

One of the ugliest predicaments I had ever been in with my Dad ended up being one of the best highlights of my times growing up. And it taught me a valuable lesson. 

Sometimes, many time, you need to hit the reset button. 

Maybe you wake up and make a slew of mistakes—hit the reset button.

Maybe you spilled your coffee, got a speeding ticket and were still late to work—hit the reset button.

Maybe you looked at what you shouldn’t, did what you said you wouldn’t—hit the reset button.

Maybe someone else has done this that and the other to you—hit the reset button for them.

Thankfully God is the God of a thousand chances. Hit the reset button often with prayer, repentances and asking for forgiveness. Keep short account with God and others. 

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning… (Lam 3:22-23)

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:19)

LISTEN TO LIFE’S WARNINGS. 

I remember when I was young, again traveling home with my Dad from the city, on a large bus. About an hour into the trip I kept hearing this loud buzzing sound, going on and off, on and off… and then eventually it was constant. I finally asked my dad what the sound was, it was inescapable. You couldn’t miss it! We were right in the front of the bus with a clear view of the driver…and he pointed out that there was a large red light that on the dashboard that kept lighting up in correlation with the buzzing. The light was for an overheating engine. But did our driver care? Nope. He was cool as a cucumber, smoking cigarette one after another and continuing to go well over the speed limit on a horrible road. He was pushing forward with all he had. He apparently didn’t see the light, didn’t hear the sound…or had just gotten used to it and simply didn’t care anymore.

Well sure enough, the engine did over heat and we were stranded on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere with a steaming engine for hours.

Sometimes I wish that life had a flashing red light and a loud buzzing noise when I am going too hard, too fast and pushing the limits on a bumpy ill-advised road.

But often it does. 

First, is our conscience. Romans 2:15 says ‘their consciences also bears witness, and their thoughts sometimes accusing them and at other times even defending them…’ and as believers the Holy Spirit warns loud and clear over and over in many situations. 

But if your life is anything like mine. I can get pretty good at ignoring the buzzing, and flashing of the warning signs in my head that are screaming… GET OUT… TAKE THE NEXT EXIT… SLOW DOWN … MAKE FIRST AVAILABLE U-TURN. And pretty soon, that once loud warning voice, is oddly quiet and almost non-existent. 

Second, are warning signs that God sends into our life that most often look like inconveniences. Just after moving here I got a speeding ticket while driving home. The road was unfamiliar and I thought that I was on another road. Two back to back possible left turns on parallel roads and I took the first instead of the second. The one I thought I was on was 35mph, the one I had turned down was 25mph. Still… I was going 40. So yes, guilty. The cop didn’t care that I was new to the area. I was pretty frustrated that he didn’t give me a warning considering I had only lived in the town for two weeks and hadn’t gotten a ticket in 10 years. Little did I know that God was sending me a warning. The cop actually said, you have to be careful making that left because ‘many walkers, and joggers cross right there without stopping/looking’. 

The very next week when I was driving home and taking the same route, I was going much slower, since, tickets always get your attention. And wouldn’t you know…a jogger ran right out in front of me without looking or stopping. Had I been going 25, rather than the 20 I was now going because of the wake up call…I most likely would have hit them…and it may not have even been my fault. You better believe that I take that corner ever so slow now. I actually stopped the officer not long after when I saw him patrolling in town to thank him… for the $120 ticket. Because it very well may have saved me from hurting someone very badly and costing me way more than that. God may very well have sent that cop to stop me from ending a life a week later. 

Be aware of the warning signs that are being sent into your life. They are there for a reason. Don’t ignore them. Typically the louder or more dramatic the warning sign…the more imminent the danger and risk. Keep your radar up for them and actually listen to them. 

God warns people to stop them from doing wrong and to keep them from becoming proud. He does this to save them from death. He wants to keep them from being destroyed. (Job 33:17-18)

MISTAKES ARE MORE CRUCIAL THE LATER THEY OCCUR. 

We all watched the Superbowl this year… and we all left thinking; what in the world were the Seahawks thinking!?!? All they needed to do was move the ball 3-4 feet and they would be the back to back Superbowl Champions. Oddly enough, they elected to throw the ball from the 1 yard line…and it was intercepted. In a millisecond, all that training, all the hard work, all the planning was flushed down the drain. That single play can teach us 100 lessons. Such as, you can lose everything in a second with a single bad decision. We probably would lose count trying to count all of the people mentioned in the media who have lost everything because of one bad text message, one bad tweet, and one bad night. 

But the point I want to make is this…

Tom Brady actually threw a much worse pass in the first half when the Patriots were going in to score. The defender didn’t have to make the play of the year to stop it—he threw it right to him. Just like the Seahawks, the Patriots were within yards of the end zone and it would have been the first score of the game. The interception ended a promising drive and any hope of scoring. It is well known that teams that score first in the Superbowl are exactly twice as likely to win. (32-16) On top of that, Brady actually threw twice as many interceptions as Russell Wilson.

So why are we talking about Russell Wilsons interception?

Because that single play defined the outcome of the game… and why? Because of when it happened. It happened so late in the game that the Seahawks couldn’t make up for it. Time is a factor. 

Mistakes that are made later in the game… of life… are often way more costly than mistakes made early on. A bad habit, a bad grade, a bad relationship in High School usually isn’t life altering. It can be… but a bad habit, a bad grade, a bad relationship in college… is much more costly…. A bad habit as a father, a bad grade at work and a bad marriage… is extremely costly. 

This is all the more urgent, for you know how late it is; time is running out. Wake up, for our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is almost gone; the day of salvation will soon be here. So remove your dark deeds like dirty clothes, and put on the shining armor of right living. (Rom 13:11-12)

Things have just gotten far more serious for you now that you have graduated High School. 

Mistakes are amplified and so it is crucial that you…

Hear and react to the warning signs that are being sent into your life.

When you hear a warning sign, wake up and admit it and hit the reset button as soon as possible.

And learn from the process so that you are not costing yourself greatly.