Naked And UnafraidSample

Day 2: Abandon Smallness

Have you ever had opportunity knock, and you were absolutely certain it had the wrong door? I imagine David may have battled those feelings a bit when he was chosen to be next in line as King of Israel. David, a shepherd of his father’s sheep…a job quite monotonous and mundane in nature. That probably seemed like a giant leap.

But, when David was chosen, he was walking into a proving ground; unfamiliar territory for which he was unprepared. God had huge plans for David, but David had some growing to do. He needed to stretch David beyond leading sheep, and into leading His people.

Any time you are doing something seemingly small, you can go about it one of two ways. You can underestimate the significance of what you’re doing, or you can give 100% of your effort in that season of your life. Doing the latter creates an impressive résumé for your future. That’s what David did. He turned an otherwise boring task into a self-development classroom. He took advantage of that season in his life to grow him into the one that was coming for him down the line.

And when predator’s threatened his father’s sheep, David responded with courage and confidence (1 Samuel 17:34). He abandoned the smallness of his current reality and stepped up into the bold, courageous leader God had called him to be. Looking at today’s Scripture, it doesn’t say we faint because of the size of the adversity. It says we faint because of the smallness of our strength. “If you faint in the day of adversity, your strength is small,” (Proverbs 24:10 NKJV). 

We can’t do anything about the size of the adversity, but we can do something about the size of our strength. We can think bigger, pray bigger, have greater courage, have a bigger vision, increase our knowledge, and grow our faith. That’s what David did, and he was prepared when adversity came.

Have you ever worked on a massive jigsaw puzzle? It makes absolutely no sense as you begin until the smaller pieces are slowly and meticulously joined together to reveal the bigger picture. Abandoning smallness, to embrace the bigger picture. That’s your life, and mine as well. 

God’s plan for you is so much bigger than you can comprehend. Every challenge, every battle, is used to stretch you into the best version of yourself. Where you are now is part of the process of preparation for where God is taking you. The season you may not understand is an opportunity to trust God and the pieces—even the jagged, misshapen ones that don’t seem to fit anywhere.

What are some things in your life right now that you can accept as pieces to a bigger picture, even if you don’t know how they fit in yet?