I’b goh uh fab lib.
I said, “I’ve got a fat lip!”
No, nobody hit me. I also didn’t fall. Not this time. I got this monstrous lip when a bug ran into me. Not a VW bug, though it apparently was a beetle. It happened while I was riding my bike – kind of a drive-by bugging. I was not-so-happily cruising along gasping for breath when this kamikaze bug crashed into me head-on. I was head-on; not sure about him. I felt legs on my mouth, but I’m not sure where his head was.
He was small, but he made a big difference in my lip because he had a lot of power behind him. I must have been riding at 50 mph when we hit.
OK, that’s a typo. I was topped out at 5 mph, but he was running at least 30. Speed and momentum made him pack quite a punch.
Small things can do that. A wise young friend explained how he has lost a good bit of weight. “I quit eating so much.” Simple. No fancy exercise program. No complicated new diet. Just the small decision to eat smaller amounts. A small thing, but with big results.
Mother Teresa was asked once how a person could help to bring about world peace. Her answer? “Go home and love your family.” Small, but effective.
We certainly need big things. War heroes and inventors and doctors who find cures are all necessary. But we also urgently need people who believe in the power of small things. People who have enough faith in the little things to do them. And, sometimes it’s hard to believe that small acts of kindness or service really do make any difference.
Jesus said that it’s the small things that actually matter most. “Whoever wants to become great, among you,” he taught, “must be your servant” (Matthew 20:26). He demonstrated his own faith in small acts when he washed dirty feet in a quiet room in an obscure corner of the world (John 13) - a small act of service still known world-wide some 2000 years later.
It is easy to overlook the impact of small things. Until one of them smacks you in the face! Then, a small bug gets my attention. Now he’s gotten yours. Small things can have a lot of power behind them. Unleash that power in your life today.