Little Things

Memory Verse: "Great is your love toward me." (Psalm 86:13 NIV)


Marty and I met when we were both students at Iowa State University. Being just nineteen years old, I wasn't looking to find the love of my life. Yet, love indeed found me when I met my sweet husband. Since he was putting himself through school, Marty didn't have more than a few pennies to rub together when we first met. So, it was little things that first got my attention and captured my heart.

One afternoon, just days after we first met, Marty waited for me after class just to walk me home. As we strolled towards my dorm together, Marty listened intently to my ever word. For the first time in my life, I felt captivating. Weeks later, on our first date, Marty took my hand and led me across the parking lot to his car. Then, being a gentleman, he thoughtfully opened and closed every door for me. Throughout the evening, Marty's polite gestures made me feel safe and protected. And each evening at dinner, as I entered the crowded cafeteria with friends, Marty never failed to greet me with a gentle wave and a warm smile. Small gestures consistently demontrated over time offered me assurance that my heart was safe with his. But it was a bouquet of unique flowers pressed from Lucky Charms marshmallows that truly spoke to my heart and showed me that he was "the one'.

It was a cold January day, just after winter classes had begun and I was very sick with bronchitis. Though Marty had little money for extras, he was determined to lavish me with some get well flowers. With loving creativity, he spent a few thoughtful hours creating a unique arrangement not available through any florist. Those flowers, with their simplistic beauty, touched my heart as none ever had before. The vase was a pill cannister that had been covered in black ink from a permanent marker. A green metal paperclip, carefully outstretched, formed the stem. And colorful pastel marshmallows were pushed together into small delicate flowers. That bouqet, hand-made with love, sat on my desk even after the marshmallows had began to shrivel, for they reminded me of Marty's special love for me.

Our Heavenly Father cares about the routines of our daily lives as well, and blesses us richly through "little things". Scripture tells us"The grass withers and the flowers fall, because the breath of the LORD blows on them. Surely the people are grass." (Isaiah 40:7 NIV) Tenderly, God cares for each of us as part of His glorious creation. Every sunrise and sunset reveal God's Sovereign order. The rains and the snows deliver sustenance to the grass and remind us of God's daily provisions And just as God cares for the flowers and the trees, God takes a special interest in the needs of His children. Let us be reminded that Jesus' great miracles happened in the midst of the daily routines of everyday life. God hasn't changed. For He is still working through routines every day to show us His great love while demonstrating His sovereign power.

If we are mindful, we will notice God is perhaps most present in the routine, though we often minimize his gifts as coincidence. God, aware of our every need, positions us to receive his blessings and experience his love anew each day. And yet there is more for us to grasp as we ponder the power of the seemingly insignificant routines of each day. For, love, powerfully demostrated in routine random kindness, is never squandered by God.

In moments of sickness, sadness, or uncertainty, it is often a small routine act of love that brings healing and hope. All it really costs is a little time and effort, but the effects are powerful and eternal. Today we can all make a lasting difference in the life of someone near by being aware of the significance of "little things" done with great love. It may be a phone call. An e-mail. Or maybe even just an understanding smile during a difficult moment. "Little things" change the world one heart at a time.

Dear God,
We are amazed by the great ways you demonstrate your love for us in the routines of daily life. Your faithfullness is so great and your love so deep. Help us to see your love in the routines of our busy days. Likewise, let us be faithful to demonstrate your goodness towards others with small gestures filled with great love. Let us not forget to comfort one another and bring kindness into the lives of those near us daily. Empower us to pour out your love to a lost and lonely world with faithful acts of love and kindness.
-Amen

Reflection: How is God revealing Himself to you in the "little things"?