ALL THE SMALL THINGS

Bruce Chant

generation-j

27 July 2001

Intro.

As a little kid did you ever daydream about what it would like to be something you are not? What it’d be like to be a dog? Or what’d it’d be like to be an astronaut?

I’m sure many of us dreamt about being big – like Tom Hanks in the movie Big – when we were small. It’s a natural response – when we look at ourselves as small we can want to be bigger!

Consider this: would you rather be a Giant or Tiny?

Giant – ride your BMX over Ayres rock or thru the Grand Canyon. Use Sydney Harbour Bridge as a coat hanger, the ocean would be like a pool…

Tiny – like honey I shrunk the kids – even the backyard becomes like a Brazilian rainforest exciting and adventurous! Imagine a sled and a tub of Ice cream!

Being small might seem like the less desirable option – but it is more fun!

Being small – which is what we feel, what we are in the overall scheme of the world – is not all bad.

YOU MAY BE SMALL – BUT SMALL CAN BE GOOD! – For example electronics. Medical breakthrough’s – being able to be smaller is an advantage.

SMALL CAN BE POWERFUL. Although you may be SMALL, YOU can make a Difference!!

Proverbs 30:24-25

4 things that are small – that we can learn from.

1) SMALL (ants) CAN DO WHAT THEY DO WELL

“Four things are small, yet they are extremely wise:

Ants are creatures of little strength yet they store up their food in summer.”

Ants are easy to squash. Ants are smelly when they are squashed. Yet they are amazing!

As you may know Ants can lift more than their own body weight times heaps!! Ants can also move extremely fast. If you go into the country areas you see some anthills that are 6 ft high – ask the Leyland Brothers…

They are only small little insignificant ants but they each do their job and they do it well. And because they do their job so well – it pays off!!

They keep on keeping on in the summer – gathering food – so when winter comes they can all survive.

What does this mean for you and me? Even though we are small little humans in a world dominated by personalities and stars we can be wise like the ants.

If we do what we know how to, do what we know we should do – work hard and be diligent - then we will be sustained through the hard times of our life. If we as Christians do what we should do – pray, read the bible, be bold about Jesus, show a loving heart, be generous, be forgiving … then we will reap the benefits of that. Build righteousness into your life. It will be the foundation for your life.

Make a commitment to being bold about Jesus – witness – sow good seed and reap a harvest. Build righteousness into your life – get to work – because when the tough times come, if you’ve done what you can, you will be sustained.

“Store up for yourselves treasures in heaven”

“He who is faithful with little will be rewarded with much”

At work – keep on working, you may be small, but your faithfulness is not wasted. At school, keep going. With your friend you want to see here saved – keep working at it.

Just because you may be small doesn’t mean you can’t be wise and doesn’t mean you are easily destroyed!

2) SMALL (coneys) CAN KNOW WHERE TO GO TO BE SAFE

Proverbs 30:26

“Coneys are creatures of little power yet they make their homes in the crags.”

If you’ve just read that the first question that immediately springs to mind is…. “What the hell is a coney?” – it has nothing to do with ice cream or drugs. A coney is a cute little critter that is also known as a Rock Badger.

Rock Badgers are small and so are prone to attack by other predators… like goats!!

But just because they are small doesn’t mean they are useless – why? Because they know where to go to be safe. The crags, high up in the mountains

You maybe small and prone to attack because of your faith, because of what you believe or because of what do or don’t do, you may come under attack – verbal, physical, emotional – at school, at uni, at work, at home – but like the Coney you can be wise and you can go where you’ll be safe.

We can be like the coney - make our home amongst the mountain peaks – mountains symbolic of where God is (transfiguration, 10 commandments) – we can make a place in our life where God is and we can go there and know we are safe.

“He will never leave you nor forsake you”

“He is the glory and the lifter of your head”

“He is the rewarder of those who diligently seek Him”

“He has plans to prosper you for good and not evil…”

If you are living your life in the crags, the mountaintops, no one can get you. You’re safe. If you are walking with God – the devil can’t get you. God has you.

Build your devotional life

Develop your walk with God – get into prayer tonight, read the bible tonight and then tomorrow. Some of you need to grow – nappies are ok on babies but not 6 year olds. Seek God and he will be found. Build a safe refuge in time with God.

Just because you are small doesn’t mean you have to a victim. Don’t say if only my life was like his or hers I’d be different. You may be small but God has given you a place to go as a refuge from danger. You maybe small but that doesn’t mean you can’t be safe in God!

3) SMALL (locusts) CAN HAVE A HUGE IMPACT WHEN JOINED TOGETHER

Proverbs 30:27

“Locusts have no king, yet they advance together in rank.”

Locusts – like their cousin the grasshopper – are quite amazing.

How annoying is it to have one little cricket – making that sound in your room on a hot summers night? But consider how devastating a swarm of those suckers are when they ravage a farmer’s entire field!

By themselves they are nuisance value – together, join as one large mass – they are powerful enough to have the humans take note!

Everyone has a call, a part to play, and a destiny to inherit. But it doesn’t happen if we try and do it alone – it happens as we are joined together!

No one person is ever going to change this world by themselves. Superstars in the kingdom of God do nothing by themselves – they have to be connected. Eg Mike Watts – connect to local church. You may be small but if you get connected as part of something bigger – you can have a huge impact.

Eg – PS01 – handing out tracks/invites to the night rally. 1000’s doing is powerful – heaps more than just one or two. No one person is able to have the effect that 100’s and 1000’s can if they are joined together.

“Wisdom rages against a man who makes himself an island”

In HG this week you all would’ve received a survey that’ll help identify your motivational gift – each of us have one thing or another – it complimentary. Like the locusts they work together – connected – to see the impossible happen.

As Part of something bigger – even if you are small – you have a part to play

4) SMALL (lizards) CAN GO PLACES THEY NEVER DREAMED

Proverbs 30:28

“A lizard can be caught with the hand, yet it is found in kings’ palaces.”

You may be small but you can go far.

You might say “what the heck is a lizard doing in the king’s palace?” It doesn’t belong there – if I were a king I’d be kicking them out. But the thing is a lizard is there because people don’t notice, they don’t care.

You may be small but you can go to places you never dreamed, to places where others might say to you “you don’t belong here!”. But the thing is you may be small but you can be influential.

E.g. Elizabeth Everest – Winston Churchill’s nanny. Took a kid with ADD and taught him the word of God. Taught him courage, determination and conviction. Things he used to lead the western world out of the WW2. On his deathbed he returned to the ways of God as he had a pic of his nanny by his bed. What was she doing there? She was a nobody – she was small but she was influential.

God can take yo place you never dreamed of; in the realm of business, the media, sporting world, politics, music, schools wherever. Eg Dave – journo – ch 7, west, another west story…

You may be small but you can be so influential – just go for it.

Summary.

We all desire to be a part of something bigger than ourselves.

Eg the footy 30000. People at the olympics “I was there!”

We can be part of something bigger and it isn’t reliant on us puffing ourselves up, push ourselves forward – instead all we need to do is hook-up with someone bigger – GOD.

Zechariah 4:10 – Don’t despise the day of small things.

You can be SMALL and still make a BIG impact if you can connected to God.

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