February 1, 2016
Big Assignments begin with Tiny “Yeses”
Sharon Jaynes
Today’s Truth
“His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things’” (Matthew 5:21 NIV).
Friend to Friend
When people ask me how I got started in ministry, I tell them I started by writing for free publications for free for 10 years. This is not what most people want to hear.
When I tell them I started by folding newsletters in the den of my home for several years, they seem crestfallen.
When I tell them I started out by cleaning the bathrooms in our first little ministry office, they seem confused.
“No, I mean how did you get started writing and speaking?” they ask.
“I’m telling you,” I reply. “This is how I got started. Being faithful in the little things. By doing what God led me to do on any particular day.”
I never had a big ol’ dream to be a speaker and a writer, but that’s what God had planned for me. I just put one obedient foot in front of the other and that is where the path led.
We don’t obey God in the seemingly small assignments in order to get the bigger ones. However, God will never entrust someone with a big assignment who has not proved herself trustworthy in the small.
When God invites you to join Him in His work, what you do next reveals what you truly believe. If you trust Him completely and follow His lead in the great dance of obedience, then you will experience the spins, twirls, and lifts of the glory life Jesus came to give. If you decide to sit this one out because of fear, then the chairs along the wall are positioned just for you to sit and watch the less fearful wow the crowd. But know this: The band is playing your song.
When God extends His invitation to join Him in the divine dance of obedience, the time to accept is at that very moment. We have about 10 to 30 seconds before common sense talks us out of obeying God’s promptings. The time to act is as soon as you sense the Spirit calling you to move.
When my husband and I took ballroom dance classes (We called it Dancing with the Scars), I remember complaining to the dance instructor, “How many times are we going to have to go over the one-two-three-four of the foxtrot? I’m tired of making these little boxes. I want to move around the room! I want to dip and swirl!”
“As soon as you learn to follow your husband’s lead and master the basic steps,” she replied. Only then will we move on to fancier moves.”
As you live and move and have your being in Him, the places He will lead you will become more and more glorious as you learn to relinquish control and trust Him. Big assignments begin with a thousand tiny “yeses.” Small steps of obedience become beautiful sweeping moves of faith.
But first…you have to take the little steps.
Let’s Pray
Heavenly Father, forgive me for wanting the big assignments and not being faithful to do the seemingly smaller ones. Help me to remember that every time I obey You, even when the tasks seem insignificant, You smile and say, “Well done, My good and faithful servant.”
I love You,
Amen.
Now It’s Your Turn
Read 1 Samuel 16 and note when David was anointed as king.
What did he do between 1 Samuel 16 and 1 Samuel17? (Hint: Baa Baa)
What did David do between 1 Samuel 17 and 2 Samuel 2? Just scan the headings.
And as they say, “the rest is history.”
Are you ready to be used by God? If so, click over to my Facebook page and leave a comment that says, “I will be faithful in the little things!”
More from the Girlfriends
Do you find yourself longing to hear God’s voice—not as a once-in-a-lifetime experience but on a daily basis? Do you have a desire to see His fingerprints on the pages of your busy life? It is not a matter of does He speak, but will we listen. More than a “how to” book, Becoming a Woman Who Listens to God is a warm, fun, tender look at recognizing some of the wonderful and unexpected ways God reaches out to us with His love and presence. You will feel refreshed, reaffirmed, and renewed as you engage in listening to the One who loves to talk to you.
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