The Little Things by Joni and Friends

Sunday, 12 July 2009

The Little Things by Joni and Friends

Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much.

--Luke 16:10

Our backyard is not big. This means the two bougainvillea bushes, the
hibiscus, the hedge along the fence, and the silk oak tree in the corner, are
God's special gifts. But our one tree is in trouble. It's beginning to look dry and

brown at the twigs. I noticed earlier in the summer that it didn't flower out and

green up as much as it has in the past.

They say that when a tree begins to decay at its root or at its heart, the
mischief is first seen at the extreme ends of little branches. When you look
closely, you notice the new growth is dry and brittle.

I can't help but think of how much like trees we are. Someone once said, "He
that despiseth little things shall fall little by little." We simply must aim
to have a Christian walk that, like the sap of a tree, runs through every twig
and leaf of our character.

* * * * *

If we fail in the little things, if we ignore our tempers, our tongues, the slip of little white

lies; if we ignore the Spirit's whispers, telling us to do this or not to do that, if we

despise the small things, we shall fail little by little.

It doesn't take a theologian to remind us that decay at the heart of our Christianity will show

up in tiny slips of the tongue, small neglect of good habits, or little fudgings with the truth.

Have you been feeling yourself inching away little by little? Then keep a watch on the

small things. It's in the small matters of everyday life that the bulk of your witness is lived

out.

Prick my conscience, Father, when I am tempted to keep incorrect change, tell a little lie,

or withhold a truth. I want healthy new twigs on my tree of life.

Blessings,

Joni and Friends