Recently I was with a group of very talented friends whom we partner with in our work at Laity Lodge Family Camp. These friends serve LLFC as speakers, musicians and counselors, and we gathered for 24 hours to learn from one another about how we can do this work better. During our time together I asked a few to share what the Lord has been recently doing in the midst of their family life. One friend, Andy Gullahorn, shared a new song that he wrote. Two lines from Andy’s song stood out to me.
“Knowing small things matter
is really no small thing.
Knowing small things matter
changes everything.”
Too often I want to go “big”. I make New Year’s resolutions to train for marathons or read dozens of books. I am learning that there is significance in the small things. This is perhaps mostly true with regard to our spiritual formation. Andy wrote his song as a reaction to our tendency to think too big when it comes to our spiritual formation or that of our children’s. We put pressure on ourselves to plan and lead great family devotionals. We lament the fact that we don’t do enough bible studies with our kids or engage in enough spiritual conversations with them. Instead, perhaps we should spend more time remembering that, “knowing small things matter is really no small thing”.
Jesus knew this. In John 15:12 Jesus declares, “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.”
That’s not a simple thing to do, but it is a simple concept. Love people the way God has loved me. To be sure I will struggle at this just as I have struggled at so many other New Year’s resolutions. But, I suppose, this is so much more than a New Year’s resolution. This is spiritual formation.
Questions to consider:
Cary Hendricks – LLFC Senior Director
