“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” John 13:34 (NIV)
I’ve been thinking about small victories lately. Mother Teresa once said, “You can do no great things, just small things with great love.” I tend to get overwhelmed by the largeness of life in comparison with the smallness of my abilities. More often than not, I feel I spend my day accomplishing nothing.
This could have something to do with the fact that every time I wash a dish, pick up a toy or clean a room, there is a small army of three working against me, dirtying more dishes and flinging toys in all directions.
Add to that my thoughts of how do I grow my children properly, keep my marriage on the upswing, be a woman who follows after Jesus, help Scott in growing our church, contribute to the needs of the hungry children in the world, stay current with technology, keep up with friends and family, recycle, tend my tomato plants, and still have time to pluck my eyebrows, and I feel completely flattened by the immenseness of it all. And I really do save my eyebrows for last, which I think has caused some tension in the “marriage on the upswing” area.
So I am trying to take Mother Teresa’s words to heart. Because this small lady seemed to grasp the meaning of doing, one thing at a time. And she changed the world. Maybe I can’t accomplish my to-do list tomorrow, but I can do one or two things with a lot of love.
Jesus was the master at this. He never let an agenda get in the way of loving the people around Him. Whether it was hugging children or taking time out to heal a blind mind, each person mattered to Him and was loved by Him. And amazingly, while He was loving people amazing things were accomplished.
Faith step: Take time out of the busyness of your day today to love someone with intention and see what happens.
