“All things bright and beautiful,
All creatures great and small,
All things wise and wonderful:
The Lord God made them all...”
– Cecil Frances Alexander
Bigger is not always better, despite what my friends from Texas might claim. There are many small things that are not only remarkable but make a huge difference.
Take three very different examples. First is electrostatic force, which is the fundamental “glue” that holds oppositely charged atomic particles together. Electrostatic force is what binds electrons to the atomic nucleus and enables chemical bonding between atoms. Without this invisible force, none of the atomic particles that make us us would adhere together, and we’d waft away.
Second, imagine you have a middle-school-aged child in a new school district. You pray for your child to be able to negotiate the adjustment during a vulnerable time in their development. After a week of feeling lonely, your child returns from school and announces they’ve made a nice friend. You feel a burden lifted, knowing that something as simple as one good friend can make all the difference in your child’s school life.
Third, in Luke 16:10ff, Jesus taught what some call the little-much principle. It describes our real-world practice of gaining trust through showing ourselves responsible in our small commitments. “Whoever is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much, and whoever is dishonest in a very little is dishonest also in much.” Jesus’ proverb is echoed in Ben Franklin’s saying: “Watch the little things; a small leak will sink a great ship.” Faithfulness in small things can open the door to becoming responsible for larger things. In Luke 16:12, Jesus says that when we faithfully steward the resources of others, we may well gain the opportunity eventually to steward our own.
In fairness, I enjoy a grand spectacle as much as the next person: a magnificent Olympic opening ceremony, a majestic sunset over a windswept beach, a throng of worshippers filling a huge arena with praise. But such mountain-top experiences are not what life is typically composed of. For every big event or major life transition, there will be thousands of little moments and simple kindnesses. At the end of the day, the accumulated weight of the little moments far outweighs the occasional grand gesture. So if you have the chance, enjoy the grand moment. But in the meantime, make the most of every opportunity, as long as it is called today, to be faithful in the little things.
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