Today’s Readings: Psalm 61; Numbers 13:31-14:25; Luke 24:12-35; Ephesians 4:25-32; Psalm 20
Without even realizing it, many folks in our society have bought into the notion “Bigger is Better”. That notion hasn’t just affected our attitude toward secular interests – it’s even crept into our view of church. That’s one reason the mega church movement has exploded over the past 15 years – because folks tend to equate size with effectiveness. Growing up in a small church, however, I realized early in life that “Bigger is NOT Always Better”. I learned in a very personal way what amazing and transformative things can happen in small communities that often get overlooked. In today’s reading from Numbers, the Israelites were trying to figure out where they stood on this issue of size. After the scouts returned from scoping out the land before them, the Israelites became obsessed with rumors of the giants who lived in the land. As a result, they concluded they had no chance to move into the very land God had called them because “Bigger (in their case, the giants) was Better”. Thankfully God provided them with a leader – Moses – who helped remind them that that saying is not always true. He convinced the people that because they were pursuing something to which God had truly called them that they would be all right. And guess what? They were. Perhaps there is an area in your life that you feel called to pursue. As you have considered your call, however, you might have bumped into challenges or obstacles that seemed to dwarf your call so you too concluded “Bigger is Better”; out of fear of those challenges and obstacles maybe you abandoned your call. If that’s the case, remember Moses’ words to the people: “They have no protection and God is on our side. Don’t be afraid of them” (Numbers 14:9 from The Message). Now take a deep breath, proceed in the pursuit of your call, and remember not to equate the size of the challenges before you with your probability for success. Til next time…
Without even realizing it, many folks in our society have bought into the notion “Bigger is Better”. That notion hasn’t just affected our attitude toward secular interests – it’s even crept into our view of church. That’s one reason the mega church movement has exploded over the past 15 years – because folks tend to equate size with effectiveness. Growing up in a small church, however, I realized early in life that “Bigger is NOT Always Better”. I learned in a very personal way what amazing and transformative things can happen in small communities that often get overlooked. In today’s reading from Numbers, the Israelites were trying to figure out where they stood on this issue of size. After the scouts returned from scoping out the land before them, the Israelites became obsessed with rumors of the giants who lived in the land. As a result, they concluded they had no chance to move into the very land God had called them because “Bigger (in their case, the giants) was Better”. Thankfully God provided them with a leader – Moses – who helped remind them that that saying is not always true. He convinced the people that because they were pursuing something to which God had truly called them that they would be all right. And guess what? They were. Perhaps there is an area in your life that you feel called to pursue. As you have considered your call, however, you might have bumped into challenges or obstacles that seemed to dwarf your call so you too concluded “Bigger is Better”; out of fear of those challenges and obstacles maybe you abandoned your call. If that’s the case, remember Moses’ words to the people: “They have no protection and God is on our side. Don’t be afraid of them” (Numbers 14:9 from The Message). Now take a deep breath, proceed in the pursuit of your call, and remember not to equate the size of the challenges before you with your probability for success. Til next time…
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