When my dad was nearing the end of his life he began searching his heart to see if there was anything left undone - some unconfessed sin, a misdeed, anything at all he needed to make right before he faced God. He constantly prayed that the Holy Spirit would bring to his remembrance anything he needed to make right with his fellowman. It was during this time that he came across a rusty old garden tiller at the edge of his garden. It belonged to a farmer down the road who had sold it to Dad, but, when it didn't work, the farmer returned his money to him and told Dad just to bring it back any time.
"I thought I took this back years ago," he told my mother as he pulled the tiller out of the mass of weeds.
"Well, I know you meant to do so," Mom replied. "It never did work. Just haul it to the dump and forget it."
"It doesn't belong to me," Dad responded and started cleaning the tiller up, breaking it free from the years of corrosion and debris. Finally, he loaded it on to his pickup truck and drove to the farmer's house. The man was surprised to say the least when Dad showed up with the forgotten tiller after so many years. When Dad apologized and offered to pay him for it, the man responded with tears in his eyes, "Why, that thing never was any good! I am the one who tried to cheat you. You are an honest man."
When talking with him about the incident a few days later I remarked. "Dad, that was such a small thing! Surely you don't think God required you to take that old tiller back to him?"
"I don't rightly know," Dad acknowledged. "But when you pray and things like this happen, it's best not to take chances on missing out on receiving or being a blessing." Then his beautiful blue eyes misted with unshed tears, "And besides, I want to hear Jesus say, 'Well done'."
Small things. As I have learned to walk with God through the years, He has taught me how one small act of obedience can lead to major blessings. The Bible tells us: "Unless you are faithful in small matters, you won't be faithful in large ones." (Luke 16:10 NLT).
It is the little things that can add spice to or spoil your life. Solomon said, "the little foxes spoil the vine."
Just little things. Just insignificant matters. But, it is when we are faithful in the small matters that God entrusts us with more. Be assured God will not use you to change the world until you have been faithful in the small things in your own house, on your own street, in your own town. Listen to the Holy Spirit within you. Be obedient to his gentle nudgings. God wants to know that he can count on you to obey him in seemingly insignificant matters simply because he brings it to your attention. It may seem like a "small thing" to you, but truth is, nothing is "small stuff" to him.
"Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies." Mother Teresa
Linda Van Fleet is a freelance inspirational writer specializing in articles and features on Christian lifestyle topics, angels, Internet and social issues. Linda has 2 children and three grandchildren. Visit http://ibelieveinangels.com for great stories of faith, inspiration and angels.
© 2005 Linda Van Fleet All rights reserved.
Let Your Family and Friends Know That You Are A... Read More
In the movie "Forest Gump" we see Forest succeed in... Read More
How does God see you? Does He like what He... Read More
Before Donna was born she took with her a dollar,... Read More
God said, "Thou shalt not?" and we continue to tell... Read More
An interesting question arose within a poetry workshop I attended... Read More
THE PREMISEFeng Shui is an ancient Chinese art that has... Read More
Prayer from a child's simple bedtime prayer, to the prayers... Read More
The Planetary Spread is an excellent layout to use when... Read More
Greetings Divine Ones, I am going to ask you a... Read More
Job was a spiritual man who loved and obeyed God... Read More
If we are honest with ourselves, we would have to... Read More
The Evil Eye has been around since the beginning of... Read More
Want more peace and joy in your life? Daily stress... Read More
Feeling restless? Is part of you calling out for change,... Read More
Tarot card reading delves into an individual's psyche and thus... Read More
Liam says to Joe; "where is your God now, when... Read More
You can't help but feel a sense of electricity in... Read More
Now, we all know that we shouldn't be lead by... Read More
If anyone says that his/her religion is the only path... Read More
There is a specific technique that a Shaman uses to... Read More
While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. --ROMANS... Read More
Can two walk together unless they have agreed to do... Read More
1. Life is a precious gift given to us by... Read More
The ultimate purpose of dreaming is to provide you with... Read More
We shamans are a strange breed.....often we tend to isolate... Read More
Journal ExpressionsIf you haven't already done so, please start keeping... Read More
This question, "what is grace" plagued me more into knowing... Read More
Can God really heal your pain? Does every trial come... Read More
Jack Nicholson (Col. Jessup) (marine cornel) YOU CAN'T HANDLE THE... Read More
We hear this word so often and have one thing... Read More
One of the first issues people on the spiritual path... Read More
I can see the cops coming! They're a good thousand... Read More
"Who being in the very nature God, did not consider... Read More
A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in... Read More
My thoughts can get a little edgy at night. Possibly... Read More
Is life challenging you to take a bigger leap? Are... Read More
Be still, and know that I am God; I will... Read More
"It's a big challenge. It's a journey into the unknown.... Read More
Several years ago after I presented a workshop entitled "Spirituality... Read More
The Apocalypse, or unveilling, is the name given to the... Read More
One of the most frightening things... Read More
Why do bad things happen to good people? Surely this... Read More
Being"You have taken yourself to be something that you are... Read More
"Let me tell you why you're here. You're here because... Read More
We want to hear from God so that we may... Read More
Love is mentioned well over 350 times in the Bible.... Read More
"I would rather regret some of my failures in life... Read More
I honestly am not sure why this hit me so... Read More
For we do not have a high priest who is... Read More
The greatest frustration in a Christian's life is not being... Read More
Spirit - All Around Us, All of Us, Every One... Read More
Before we tread into the domain of Past Life... we... Read More
Matthew 22:37-39 Jesus said unto him, "Thou shalt love the... Read More
With excitement and anticipation I jumped on a plane last... Read More
All Shamans have several power songs because the vibration of... Read More
I have held numerous teleconference workshops where I help individuals... Read More
WOW ... what a question. But today, while I was... Read More
Yes, we are living in a world where we are... Read More
As you grow in wisdom, you will release, more and... Read More
In our fast paced society we often want everything done... Read More
People engaged in kissing experience information and energy transfer, although... Read More
Are you always looking for bargains, especially something that you... Read More
When my dad was nearing the end of his life... Read More
In a recent case study which I also summarized in... Read More
Do you ever feel that what you read in some... Read More
Spirituality |