I have two sons and it is curious to observe their ability to climb, scale, lift, jump, create -- to accomplish great feats of strength for a boy -- and then to see their “inability” to pick up that stained t-shirt and throw it in the dirty laundry!
Big adventure and exciting play are natural and attractive to them. Boring responsibility, on the other hand, is not. And it’s not always attractive for me, either.
I can perceive and pursue doing great and amazing feats for God, and yet find myself ignorant of or unwilling to do the small things for God, i.e., being faithful in small ways with small responsibilities.
We marvel at the miracles of Jesus’ ministry, but do we minimize the small acts of kindness He did? Was He more faithful when He healed than He was when He held a child? Or was His faithfulness and obedience to the Father in equal measure evident in everything He did, both big and small?
Many times the smallness of my responsibility isn’t as attractive when compared with the greatness of a task I hope to accomplish. But responsibility tests the disposition of the heart to humble itself, to obey, to submit, to surrender to God and His will. Small responsibilities before God, such as telling the truth, admitting wrong, holding your tongue, asking forgiveness, correcting your children or paying your bills, all of these and more test the heart and prepare the heart for greater responsibilities.
Am I being faithful in small ways? Am I fulfilling my daily responsibilities? My ability to handle more will grow in proportion to my responsibility in handling what I see as less.
Proverbs 3:6 says, “In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.” In humble responsibilities, in mundane tasks, in simple things - acknowledge God. But more than acknowledge, be familiar with God in the smallest of your ways. Have fellowship with God in the smallest of your tasks and responsibilities. The size of my responsibility is not as telling of my relationship with God as is the willingness of my heart to say “Yes” to Him in anything.
When Peter replied to Jesus, “At your word I will let down the nets,” (Luke 5:5), he had no idea Jesus was about to perform a miracle. Peter simply said “Yes”, and as a result he saw the glory of Jesus Christ. THAT GLORY, the glory of Jesus, shines through the smallest of holes, upon the narrowest of paths, and in the humblest of responsibilities.
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