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Consider
for a moment dreams or goals you've had which
have been realized. Think back on those
accomplishments or successful experiences which
are most meaningful for you to remember. I'm
willing to guess that more than one of them had a
rather tentative, inglorious start.
When we look carefully at the
path which led to a personal success, we often
realize that it began with a modest step forward,
that in time reaped a much greater harvest than
we anticipated.
Such small first steps might
include--
 An
awkward first visit to a church singles group,
that led to meeting the person you married.
A
hesitant phone call to ask someone out, or to
inquire about a job opportunity, which received a
much more positive response than you expected.
An
application for a grant, written with a sense of
futility, thinking you'd probably be better off
spending your time doing something else. Yet to
your astonishment, the grant was given, and
significant doors have now opened through that
one effort.
A
business venture begun with a paltry investment
that succeeded far beyond your expectations.
A
book, picked up in a time of discouragement, that
inspired you and gave you the perspective to
pursue your dream.
A
reconciled relationship, now going strong, which
began with a simple request for forgiveness.
With the eyes of hindsight, we
look back to such starting efforts with awe and
gratitude. We realize there was greatness in that
moment of small beginning that we didn't begin to
appreciate at the time. We may shudder, too, to
think of how close we came to not taking that one
initial step which opened such important doors.
A Reason for Optimism
Unfortunately, the benefit of the
small beginning is often lost on us when we face
the possibility of embarking on a new dream. The
effort it would take to pursue it seems massive;
we're overwhelmed with the impossibility of it
all. There seems to be little or nothing we can
do to move forward.
To the eyes of faith, though,
there is a world of difference between
"little" and "nothing." Often
there is something we can do--some obvious
first step we could take. This may be exactly
what is needed to put the wheels of faith in
motion.
For one thing, we shouldn't
underestimate the value that taking any initial
step toward a goal has upon us psychologically.
Suddenly our psyche is committed, and we become
more alert to opportunities that will move us
toward our dream. Others become more aware of our
intentions as well and are more likely to try to
help us.
Yet the spiritual aspect of
taking the first step is even more important. The
seemingly insignificant small beginning often
gets much closer to the heart of the biblical
idea of going forward in faith than we realize.
From Little Acorns . . .
We don't usually think of it this
way. The very notion of moving out in faith seems
to imply taking a bold, extravagant step of some
sort. We quickly think of the biblical
prototypes: Moses parting the Red Sea, Joshua
leading the Israelites to demolish the wall of
Jericho with a shout, David marshaling his troops
for battle, Gideon confronting the indomitable
Midianite army with only three hundred soldiers,
Esther going before King Ahasuerus knowing that
her life hung in the balance, Peter preaching
salvation to the large throng of Jews gathered on
the day of Pentecost. It's easy to conclude that
if we're not throwing caution to the wind, we're
not really taking a step of faith.
Yet Scripture also shows great
respect for the small, subtle, unspectacular
first step. Consider these examples--
In
the parable of the talents Jesus, commended the
two servants who invested their money and
upbraided the one who failed to give his one coin
to the bankers (Mt 25:14-30). Few first steps are
less inspiring than putting money in the bank. No
one notices, there are no neon lights, and there
is no immediate reward for this act of
discipline. In fact, the period you must wait for
any significant benefit can seem interminable.
Yet with time the incremental gains grow larger
and larger, and the eventual profit is
considerable.
It's striking that Jesus paid
such respect to prudent financial investment.
Clearly, too, he intended the parable of the
talents to be an analogy to other areas of life
where we take risks for his sake. It conveys an
unmistakable lesson--that we shouldn't neglect
the benefit of a small beginning in any venture
of faith.
Ruth's
marriage to Boaz--one of the most celebrated in
Scripture--resulted from a small, ignoble step
forward. The marriage became possible because
Ruth and her mother-in-law, Naomi, moved from
Moab to Bethlehem. The move, detailed in the book
of Ruth, was anything but a triumphant one for
these two women. Both went to Bethlehem as
widows--Naomi returning grief-stricken to her
homeland, and Ruth following along out of
devotion to Naomi. The move was borne more of
necessity than of vibrant vision for the future.
Yet at least they did something
to break the inertia of their grief and make a
fresh start. In time the move brought benefits
that exceeded their wildest expectations. Ruth
met Boaz and married him, then gave birth to a
son who became an ancestor of David. Naomi also
found new life in this family connection, and in
the many friendships that opened for her in
Bethlehem. An unglamorous step forward brought
about a wellspring of life for Naomi, Ruth, Boaz,
and countless others who enjoyed the family
relationships that resulted in the generations
which followed.
We
tend to glamorize the healing incidents in the
Gospels and assume that those who came to Jesus
for help did so boldly, with sublime confidence
that they would be instantly cured. I'm certain,
though, that many came in the same ambivalent,
tentative spirit in which we often seek medical
help today. The woman with the hemorrhage is a
case in point (Mark 5:24-34). Terribly concerned
that no one would notice her, and uncertain
whether approaching Jesus was even appropriate,
she decided merely to touch the hem of his
garment. That one small gesture not only brought
her healing but an effusive compliment from Jesus
about her faith (v. 34).
As we see here, Scripture not
only describes small first steps which brought
results over time, but those which reaped a
surprising harvest immediately. Virtually all of
the healing miracles mentioned in Scripture fit
this pattern. The "miracles of
expansion" do as well. These include
incidents in the Old and New Testaments where
large crowds were fed with a small provision of
food (2 Kings 4:42-44; Mk 6:33-44, 8:1-9), and
the miraculous provision of oil that saved the
widow of Cain from financial ruin (2 Kings
4:1-7). While we cannot presume that our own
small first steps will immediately produce such
astonishing results, we can never know unless we
try.
And in time the results of a
meager first effort often do surprise us.
The Challenge of Small
Beginnings
While taking the small first step
can make all the difference, there are two
factors which can keep us from appreciating an
opportunity to move forward that we actually
have. One is that because of its apparent
insignificance, we may not even recognize the
small beginning that's available for us to make.
I remember a friend who left a
well-paying nursing job to enter a doctoral
program. Though Nancy had long wanted to pursue
this goal, she assumed it was financially
impossible, since she was a single parent in her
forties. Finally she faced up to the fact that
there was a small beginning she could make, which
was to apply for grants. She made six
applications, assuming her prospects for success
were minimal. To her astonishment, four of the
six were granted. When Nancy shared this personal
triumph with me, I couldn't help but think of how
many people there must be who need this same
financial assistance--and would qualify for
it--yet have concluded that it isn't worth the
trouble to apply. Nancy herself had overlooked
this option for years.
Of course, writing a grant
application means some uninspiring paper work,
and this suggests a second factor that can keep
us from recognizing the chance to make a small
beginning--the fact that we may look with
contempt upon what we have to do.
Such was the near-fatal flaw of
Naaman the leper in the Old Testament. Naaman
sought healing for leprosy from Elisha, who told
him to wash seven times in the Jordan river.
Naaman's response was one of anger: "I
thought that he would surely come out to me and
stand and call on the name of the LORD his God,
wave his hand over the spot and cure me of my
leprosy. Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of
Damascus, better than any of the waters of
Israel? Couldn't I wash in them and be
cleansed?" (2 Kings 5:11-12 NIV). The text
concludes, "he turned and went off in a
rage."
Naaman's servants had the good
sense to challenge him, saying, "if the
prophet had told you to do some great thing,
would you not have done it? How much more, then,
when he tells you, 'Wash and be cleansed'!"
(v. 13). Naaman fortunately repented of his
obstinacy and followed the prophet's counsel. Yet
his example warns us that no matter how greatly
we want to reach a goal, our disdain for some of
the details may keep us from moving forward. The
initial steps that we must take are particularly
likely to seem distasteful to us.
We need, in short, a greater
esteem for the small beginnings of life.
"Don't despise the day of small
beginnings," as Pat Robertson is fond of
paraphrasing Zechariah 4:10.
Taking Heart
Do you have a personal dream
which has not been realized? To the best of your
knowledge, is your dream in line with God's best
intentions for your life? Yet does it seem that
there is little or nothing you can do to move
toward your goal-that your hands are tied?
Remember that a small beginning
is sometimes the very step needed to open
yourself to the provision of Christ. Pray
earnestly and look honestly at what you actually
can do to start moving toward your goal. Don't
look with contempt on the small beginning. Think
of it as the launching point for a journey of
faith.
And remember that God's hand in
your life is not shortened.
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