Big

Title: Big

There was only one word to describe my father when I was 5 years old and that word was Big! I realized this truth on more than one occasion when I tried to walk in his shoes, put on his shirts and look like him. Maybe every boy does this at some time or another or possibly I’m just weird. Regardless, that’s when I understood there is a size differential between people.

According to one dictionary the word ‘BIG” means: large, sizable, substantial, great, huge, immense, enormous, extensive, colossal, massive, mammoth, vast, tremendous, monumental, mighty, gargantuan, gigantic, giant etc.

There is a contrast between big and small seen in a historical narrative within the books of the Bible and it’s about a boy named David and a man named Goliath. This might be one of the best-known accounts in the entire Bible.

It’s a story about a young boy who faced a crisis of mammoth proportions. A gigantic and massive person named Goliath challenged David to a battle that would ultimately determine the outcome of a war. If there were an Ultimate Fighting Championship, this would have been it! The results seemed predictable but even though Goliath was more powerful, more experienced and much larger in stature, David overcame the odds, rose to the occasion and triumphed convincingly. His victory opened the door for His country to experience freedom from persecution and provided an opportunity for unadulterated celebration.

When a person is confronted with things bigger than he or she is – the possibility of fear and a spirit of intimidation can grip the heart and cloud the thinking. Paul the Apostle said these words:

2Tim. 1:7 “For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid but gives us power love and self-discipline.”

David wasn’t afraid. Here are 3 reasons:

1. David walked in obedience because he loved God.

God used his obedience as His pen to write David’s future. Walking in obedience prepares you for battles bigger than you! When you follow God’s lead, give heed to His instruction and walk in accordance to His Word you will triumph over your gigantic challenges.

2. David walked in humility while his opponent stood in arrogance and pride.

James 4:6,  “God sets himself against the proud, but he shows favor to the humble.”

3. David depended upon God and not his own abilities.

Proverbs 3:5-6, Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.

David’s victory was not recorded to communicate mere information. It was written to help all of us gain insight and courage. Victory over the ‘bigger than you’ challenges is possible for you and me if we follow in David’s footsteps and place our confidence in the Lord.

Have you ever been confronted with things bigger than you? Maybe your debt has become a giant and seems insurmountable. Possibly you have lost your job and the very thought of training for a new career seems overwhelming.

We all encounter times when we feel like underdogs, facing insurmountable odds? If you humbly walk in obedience to God’s word, remain confident in His strength and stand in faith, you can face the big things in life with the assurance that God will fight on your behalf and show you the practical steps to victory. The ‘BIG’ things may be larger than you but they are smaller than God.

Little Things

by Andrew Cromwell

Little things become big things. It is such an obvious observation that I hesitate to mention it. Little children grow up. Little trees become giant towers. Little beginnings often become significant legacies.

Most things are designed to grow. When something doesn’t grow, we automatically search for the reason. This is the nature of things. This is true with living things, but it is also true with problems.

Have you noticed that little problems often become big ones when they are left to themselves? A friend recently shared with me that he ignored a small problem in his car, telling himself it was too expensive to deal with at the moment. Now he’s paying five times that amount in repairs when that little thing became a big thing.

The Apostle Paul said, “A little bit of yeast works its way through the whole dough.” Bakers know that you don’t need to add much yeast, because by its very nature yeast affects everything it comes in contact with. It’s like a single drop of food coloring in a pitcher of water—in just moment the whole pitcher blooms in color.

A local farmer told me about a time he was irrigating. He couldn’t figure out where his water was going. The trees should have been standing in a foot of water, but they weren’t. As he poked around in the mud to try and find out why, suddenly the ground caved underneath him and carried him down the hill. Fortunately he was alright, and he found his water. A little gopher hole had carried it away to a patch of sand where it had quickly been sucked down.

A small engine leak, an unpaid bill, a relationship that is just a little off kilter—all are small things, but they can turn into huge things if ignored for too long. Deal with it now and you save yourself pain and expense later. It’s up to you.

So what have you been ignoring, just hoping that by doing so it will go away? Perhaps it’s time to take your medicine so that you don’t have to swallow the whole bottle later!

Big

by Tim Howard

As a kid, I remember visiting New York and looking at the Empire State Building. The first words out of my mouth were: “Wow, that’s big!” When I visited the Grand Canyon as an adolescent, the first words out of my mouth were: “That’s enormous!”

As an adult, whenever I look at the stars and the Milky Way I use a variety of words. Huge. Big. Awesome. Unfathomable. Immense. Vast and Incomprehensible, to name a few.

Our galaxy is beyond big and when you look into deep space as they did in 1996 through the Hubble Space telescope you discover the magnitude of what we call the Universe.

According to scientific data there are 200 billion to 400 billion stars in our galaxy alone. In 1996 they discovered at least 3000 more galaxies beyond the Milky Way when they focused the Hubble Space telescope onto one dark patch in the constellation – Ursa Major – right next to the Big Dipper. 

In 2004 they opened the lens of that same telescope for 11 days and focused it on another spot in the Orion constellation. They discovered thousands and thousands of other galaxies. Imagine how our data would increase if they could focus on all 88 current constellations and not just in one or two spots. That is gargantuan and beyond perception. That’s BIG.

The very first verse in the Bible says: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” He is not enamored with the galaxies as we are because He made them.  He’s not surprised by our discovery of a measureless universe because He is the one who brought it into reality.  The Grand Canyon may impress visitors but its small potatoes when compared to His ability and greatness. As the Creator of this massive and astronomical universe – He is obviously greater and bigger than the creation He brought into being.

No wonder David said in Psalms 139 “this knowledge is beyond my capability to comprehend. It is too lofty for me.”  In view of God’s immensity, Paul the Apostle said in Eph. 3:20 “He is able to do far more abundantly than all we ask or think, according to the power at work within us.” As creator He is all – powerful. More powerful than anything we have ever seen or known – because He is big!

He’s big enough to help you find your way when you get lost. And we all get lost now and again. When I lost my way and experienced severe depression in my senior year of High school and contemplated suicide, God showed His greatness by helping me to find a way through.

He is big enough to help people who have lost hope and bring healing to people who are broken. He’s big enough to extend mercy and withhold judgment for a season even though we deserve it. He’s big enough to love you even though you may not love Him. That’s BIG!