A Small Wonder

“Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin, to see the plumb line in Zerubbabel’s hand.”  Zachariah 4:10.

Soul surfer Bethany Hamilton is an example of small steps leading to big dreams. If you didn’t see the movie Soul Surfer, Bethany Hamilton was a natural talent in the sport of surfing. At age 13, an almost deadly shark attack resulted in her losing her right arm. She was back on her surfboard one month later, and after two years of small steps forward she won first place in the Explorer Women’s Division of the NSSA National Championships.

When we think of responding to God’s call, we often remember the dramatic stories: Gideon defeating an army with 300 men, Elijah and the prophets of Baal, and Paul struck blind to name a few. But what about all us “ordinary” followers of Jesus? 

Sometimes in life, we get so overwhelmed by the enormity of our goals that we give up before we even start trying to achieve them. If our goal is to get out of debt, that number may seem so large and so daunting, that it keeps us from even taking a first step in the process. Or we may dream about being the CEO of a company, but just the thought of starting at the bottom and working our way up through the ranks seems almost impossible, so why even bother?

But God never intended for us to do everything at once. In fact, that’s not how He works through us either. God usually doesn’t reveal His whole plan to us. He may give us a small piece of the plan or just give us a direction to follow, but we may not know the rest of the plan for quite a while, if ever. All He wants you to do is trust Him, and step out in faith.

Chances are we will not become, Gideon, Elijah or Paul in 2018, if at all. No one expects us to be like them. They didn’t have to have everything all figured out at once or even be able to see the end picture in its entirety. But what they did do is to take that first step and then another.

God wants us to keep taking steps toward our goals and to listen for His guidance along the way. So put aside any worry or guilt that might be holding you back and commit to taking small steps each day, week and month as we progress further into 2018. That could mean getting baptized, committing to digging into the Bible each day, discovering how God wants to use you to help others, or just learning more about God’s plan for your life.

Discussion questions:

1. How do you define small steps? What makes it a small step rather than a big step?  
2. What can we do this week to start taking small steps?