We are taught to cast great visions and dream big dreams. We are told that we should be audacious in our expectations and bold in our attempts to accomplish them. “Expect great things and attempt great things.”
There is nothing wrong with dreaming big and aiming far. There is nothing wrong with wanting to accomplish more instead of less and nothing wrong with wanting to grow steadily rather than slowly or, worse, to remain stagnant. It is good to be a faithful steward of whatever God has given to us and it is good to strategize ways to maximize every gift.
Yet the fact is that God is more interested in who we are becoming than in what we are accomplishing. Great deeds done from bad motives please God less than small deeds done from great character. And character’s primary focus is always on the matter at hand, the duty of the moment. Duty is gladly waylaid for the sake of the senior who needs a helping hand, the mourner who needs a sympathetic ear, or the child who needs a token of love. Duty despises no opportunity to do good unto the least of these.
Yet we can’t obey God in dreams or honor him in vision, but only in the nitty-gritty of real life.
Most of life is lived in the little things and it is possible to focus on the big while ignoring the small. Yet we can’t obey God in dreams or honor him in vision, but only in the nitty-gritty of real life. Life is most truly lived in the moment-by-moment opportunities and hour-by-hour responsibilities. Even our big plans unfold in small matters and mundane decisions. It is possible to realize grand dreams while despising small moments, to accomplish big plans while ignoring the vicissitudes of God’s providence.
Thus, we must always guard ourselves against allowing the small to be the enemy of the big, of despising little opportunities to do good lest they imperil our dreams of doing much. In fact, to truly master life, we must work from the small to the great. Here’s the key: If we master our moments we will master our days and if we master our days we will master our lives—we will live lives worthy of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It all hinges on the moment—the moment of duty, the moment of possibility, the moment God’s providence presents an opportunity to do good.
