Small things matter.

Can I ask you a question? 

What do you want in life?

We live in a culture that is always wanting more. More money. More things. More stuff. More. More. More. There is one word that drives a lot of my time and attention. DESIRE

The desire to please others. 

The desire for something more. More things. More money.

More Nike shoes.

The desire to make it big. Be successful. Be the best.

The desire to be known. The desire to be liked. The desire for the praise of others.

The desire for something that I just cannot get my fingertips on. 

What do you desire? What is it that drives you? 

Fill in this sentence: I want more of___________________.

Throughout the ministry of Jesus Christ, he taught in parables. They were short and sometimes long stories that had a climax of meaning or a major point that he was attempting to teach. One of those parables is found in Mark 4:30-32

And he said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use for it? It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown on the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth, yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes larger than all the garden plants and puts out large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.”

Here Jesus compares the Kingdom of God to a grain of a mustard seed. The smallest of all the seeds on the earth. 

Do you ever feel or think you are small or insignificant? I know I do. In a culture of desire and want, I am tempted to think that if I have more____________, then I will have arrived. I will have achieved something of significance or importance. 

But, that is not what Jesus calls his disciples toward. Here, this grain of seed is small. At first glance, it is small, insignificant and not important or seen to the physical eye. It is buried in the ground, building small roots that eventually grow into large roots. Then, one day you begin to see it come up from the ground. This is how Jesus describes the people of God.

Jesus’ Kingdom, his values and attributes begin small. 

Small prayers. 

Small acts of love.

Small steps of obedience. 

Small and simple ways of loving and serving others. 

Small daily choices that lead us toward a faithful and meaningful life.

Eventually, this mustard seed becomes a tree. A tree that bears much fruit. A tree that has large branches where birds nest, live, and take refuge. The world needs the people of God to be this kind of seed and tree. Not just individually but collectively as the united body of Christ.

So, start small.

Small smiles. 

Small greetings. 

Small acts of mercy and care.

Small daily doses of surrender. 

Give up the temptation for instant transformation and gratification. 

Ask for God to give you his desires.

Remember that small things matter.