Faith is active

Do what you can...

People often think that there's so much stuff going on and bad things happening that it wouldn't make any change if they did something small. Or if they didn't do anything at all. They see the challenges as unbreakable blocks that prevent better things from coming to them. Often their minds wander to the past and create scenarios about why things can't change.

After each night comes a day and it has been the same way for a long time. As long as I can remember, both highs and lows and ups and downs are part of the cycle we witness in life. But our perspective and how we see things matters. If our bowl keeps being half empty and our mind allows us to only see the worst option, we can't do much to help God with the plan He created for us. What if His idea of your part was slightly different than what it seems now?

Every little bit can build the Kingdom and every bit of bread can feed someone somewhere. Every time we do something as an act of faith we are part of His Kingdom workmanship and are practicing our God given gifts. I believe that everyone can do something. But what is it that you can do right now?

Often times acts of faith require plenty of bravery. We might realize that we are being pulled from our comfort zones and our next steps seem quite uncomfortable. We don't know what to do or how to accomplish the task in front of us. We only might see the few steps ahead but nothing more and His word is the lamp in our feet quite literally. Stepping into something that God is opening for us often means overcoming our fears and adapting a mentality that is different from the world's way of thinking. Statistics may predict that actions won't be very productive or succeed but there's evidence that minority may have been successful in the past. It takes only one person and one act of faith to do something for the first time.

Do we look at the evidence and calculate the odds in worldly terms? Jesus multiplied the bread and fish. He created miracles wherever He went. He wasn't often well received and even faced oppression trying to do good. He kept finding His way to fulfill His Father's wishes and had to do things in secret. He was not well received among His own and even His own family would not recognize who He really was. He still kept going. He did what He felt was right and believed and had an impact.

I have seen many lives changed by the acts of kindness, by the actions of love and just by reaching out in perfect time. Jesus knew when people were ready. He used parables when He spoke because the audience wouldn't receive stronger, more direct message. Jesus was the preacher of His time who opposed the majority of religious elite and didn't win over the hypocrites whose hearts were not ready.

When we do small things with love out of heart that has room for Jesus, we can make our part daily. We can take that one small step and focus on the task God gives us each day. He knows how we can help Him and wants us to grow into Christlikeness that has enough light and salt for such a time as this.

But are we ready? What if His schedule is different from ours? He interrupts our own plans and wants to replace them with His own? His idea seems completely absurd to us and yet our hearts keep drawing us into something different? He repeats His invitation and won't let us continue with the patterns that are safe and familiar. He asks us to trust Him and pushes us into action we have not tried before. What then?

We can still do little things with great love. Start with small and let it grow. We can let Him take the lead and guide us to avoid the stumbling blocks. We can review the idea by rehearsing it and write it down to keep it alive in case we forget. Because it is very possible that we will forget eventually. But He won't.

When we are urged to do something and feel the prompting to do so, we should not wait. We should do exactly what we are experiencing in that moment. Trusting that it is something that can make a difference, big or small, but yet a difference for better. God wants us to be connected to Him, which is love. And when we are in that beautiful state, we can do anything with Him. Even the acts of kindness can multiply. Because that's how the Kingdom of God grows. Organically and without force.