This week we continued on Little is Big. While last week we focused on the affects of accepting little sin, this week we talked about making small positive changes.
So often we avoid making necessary changes in our lives because they seem so big. For instance, maybe you want to lose some weight. The tight restrictions in diets are more than you are willing to accept so you just never do it. But making small changes can also make a major impact. If you just cut back from fast food 4 times a week to only 2 times you would probably see a change.
When I tried giving up my nightly ice cream habit I did it through making small changes. First I went from eating half a carton to a smaller bowl. Then I eventually analyzed what it was about ice cream that I was craving. It was the dairy and the sweet taste. So I replaced it with a bowl of cereal. Now, it wasn't a particularly healthy cereal, but it was definitely more healthy than the ice cream. So, instead of never giving up the ice cream because I thought I couldn't do it, I slowly removed it by making small changes.
We've been using Luke 16:10 as our core scripture which talks about being faithful with little. This week we looked at the rise of King David in 1 Samuel 17. When the prophet Samuel comes to his father's home to look for the next king, Jesse brings out all the older brothers who apparently weren't doing anything. I say this because only David is mentioned as being busy. He was out tending the sheep in the fields. He was working on something little.
The brothers were hanging out and playing on the Xbox or chatting with friends on MySpace. Samuel says that none of them are the "one". Then Jesse mentions there is David working out in the fields tending sheep and Samuel is like, "That's the one. The one that's working."
Then in the story of his confrontation with Goliath he points out that his experiences leading up to that point made him ready for this challenge. He had already defeated the lion and the bear. He didn't just decide on the spur of the moment that he could defeat a 10-foot giant. He had completed smaller things that led him to that point.
In our lives, we have a choice in where we will end up. That choice comes in the form of small choices every single day. We can make bad choices and wake up one day and wonder how we've gotten so far off. We can also make good choices and wake up one day and wonder how did we get so blessed. The choices are yours!
