6' 4" small

"Do not despise small begginings!"
Zech 4:10

I still remember when I was "gung-ho" about leading Bible studies and such on my college campus. I was complaining about the lack of other believers and the fanning out of people coming to my small group. That's when three of my family members quoted the verse above. Their voices were in perfect stereophonic unison, and echoed across the walls. It was one of those things. "Okay, God. I got the message."

These days, the same counsel stands. I'm starting out small. Trying out a part time job as a C.N.A. (God willing) once I've passed the test next week. So far, the plan is just to go back to school to become a teacher. It may change, but that's what I'm thinking.

I think God is helping me think on a smaller scale. How did He reveal the plan of salvation? A young man named Jesus, the Son of the living God, cleverly disguised as a teacher. What did this young teacher use to talk about the revolutionary kingdom of God? I could be wrong, but I think it was mainly stories. Who did Jesus charge with taking this important message to the world? A bunch of idiots just like you and me who didn't get what He was talking about, even when He repeated himself three times. Also, correct me if I'm wrong, we have only 4 of the original 12 (minus 1, Judas Iscariot) disicples account of Jesus (Gospels). What happened to the other 7? They were out sharing the Gospel, not as someone else, but as themselves. Jesus never asked someone to change their personality in order to follow Him. Peter was outspoken. John was passionate. Luke was meticulous and methodical. Matthew was a tax collector, similar to a used car salesman. Didn't Jesus realize that He could have had a serious affect on the world by using the Roman authorities? They had power, money, and influence over society. They could actually get things written and moving. What about the Greeks? Egyptians? I mean, come on Jesus, you're not thinking big enough. No, see that's what we would've done.

"For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
And My ways are not your ways,
For as high as the heavens are to the earth,
So are My thoughts to your thoughts,
And My ways to your ways."
Isaiah 55:8-9

God doesn't think the way we do. He does things differently. Think of the ways Jesus stood up for people, when He was expected to do something else (children, Samaritan woman, woman caught in adultery, lepers, Canaanite woman, man with disabled hand,etc.). He communicated God's thoughts of healing, forgiveness, anger, and, at times, a sense of humor. I think God knew how we would need something simple, not large. "Follow me" is a simple statement, and essentially gives us all the direction we need in life. No matter what happens, we keep following Jesus. God knows what it is to be human, and knew that we would have so many questions, and fears. That's why He kept things simple. "I am the good shepherd. My sheep hear My voice and they follow me. They will not listen to the voice of a stranger." There's that "follow me" stuff again. Death and pain are two things that most of us humans would rather avoid at all costs, and yet, Jesus faces a death that gave a new meaning for the word pain, "excruciating", when He died on the cross. The bravest man who ever lived, and the only one to come back to life again. This is where the verse "death where is thy sting? death is swallowed up in victory" comes in. Jesus is the love, truth, and courage we need. "All power belongs to our God" and "He has given Him the name that is above every name, that every knee would bow, and every tongue would confess Jesus Christ is Lord." God is powerful. As Charles Price says in "Christ for Real", He is not only able to forgive sin, "but He is also able to deliver from the power of sin." We can always come to God with everything, no matter how messy it is. Our Heavenly Father can untangle the worst knots our souls can get tied up in. Sin makes everything complicated. Jesus makes everything simple again. We just follow Jesus.

"Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus,
Though He was God, He did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made Himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness."
Phil 2:5-7

God became human and served other humans. A very simple idea. Lose your own pride, and serve others.

"What is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God."

Could it be that our perception is off? That simply following Jesus and serving others is really all that's necessary? I don't doubt that God can use big things like music albums, movies, conferences, and inspiring speeches by famous people, but I think sometimes we idolize these things, and esteem them too much. What if a revival occured in our families, neighborhoods, and local cities? What if people no longer saw "Ned Flanders" as the example of a Christian, but someone who is a plain ordinary person who follows Jesus? More and more, people are looking for the real Christians who claim to care about the world.

"What can men do against such reckless hate?" says King Theoden.
"Ride out and meet it." says Aragorn in response.
-Lord of the Rings, The Two Towers

Could it be possible that things are much simpler than what we think? As a young man, full of passion, I want to change the world. As a C.N.A., I'll get my chance, but not quite the way I had envisioned. More than likely I'll be helping clean up elderly people who can't clean up after themselves. It may not affect the global world, but it will impact the local world here in Florida. It's hard work, and not glamarous. It's easy to see the Christians who seem like stars on a stage and want that, but we forget that there are other positions offstage that are essential for the production to go on.

"Let everyone walk as they were called, and so I ordain in all the churches,"
-Apostle Paul

Not everyone is called to the same thing. We all have the same Master, but different positions. We just need to do what we were supposed to do and not worry about what everyone else is doing, and why we can't be doing that instead.