Notice the Little Things

This morning we had a minor catastrophe. Today is trash day. As our older son carried a trash bag filled with yucky spoiled food from the refrigerator, it burst open just before he got to the curb. What a mess. Befuddled as to what to do and horrified at the thought of touching the awful spillage, our son in tears stood paralyzed in the driveway. My poor wife had to clean up the mess. She sure was not happy about it but it had to be done.

A ruptured trash bag is not the end of the world (unless you are a traumatized 11 year old). Though unhappy at the prospect of handling the garbage, my wife's day was not ruined. The incident is a little thing in the grand scope of life. There was no fanfare save for the few tears of a young boy. But the clean-up needed to be done. She immediately did what she needed to do. Now the mess is gone and she and our 11 year old can get on with their day. By the way, I did take a moment to let her know how much I appreciated her taking care of the matter and that it meant a lot to me even if no one else noticed. In life, even the seemingly little things need attending. If left undone, those small matters grow into a heap ripe for decay.

In our Christian lives if we fail to tend to the "little" things then we may soon find ourselves standing on a mountain of rotting filth. Are we quick to deal with sin as it rears its ugly head or do we let it remain and stink? The Psalmist, David, said in Psa. 66:18 that if I regard sin in my heart that God will not hear me. The Apostle John tells us in I John 1:9 that if we will confess our sins then God is faithful to forgive us and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. A particular sin might seem like a small thing to you and I but to God it is not small. Sin hinders our fellowship with the Father.

Do we guard our relationships or do we allow wounds of hurt feelings or unkind words to fester? Paul told Timothy that the tongue is wicked and asked the rhetorical question as to who could tame it. Oh, how easy it is to offend with words. The childrens rhyme "sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me" is not true. Words can cut deeply. A thoughtless remark can severely damage a relationship of not quickly addressed. Let us go to an offended brother or sister quickly seeking restoration and asking forgiveness. Proverbs 25:11 says that words fitly spoken are like apples of gold in pictures of silver. They are precious. So are our relationships. Make sure a "little" thing does not ruin something precious.

Eternity rests on one little thing. What have you done with Jesus Christ? Do you believe Him? Have you placed your trust in Him? Have you asked Him to forgive you and save you? He does not ask us to perform great and glorious tasks to win His favor. He does not ask us to self-actualize into the very best person we can be before we approach Him. He simply asks us to believe. It seems so easy, so simple, so small. Yet, your eternity depends on whether or not your faith is in Christ.

Do the small things while they are still small. If we ignore them, we will find ourselves in the middle of a garbage dump without a shovel.

Because He lives,

Robby