Daily Readings for Thursday, March 10, 2011
- Morning Psalms 27; 147:12-20
- First Reading Deuteronomy 7:6-11
- Second Reading Titus 1:1-16
- Gospel John 1:29-34
- Evening Psalms 126; 102
Dueteronomy 7, verses 6 and 7: "For you are a people holy to the Lord your God; the Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on earth to be his people, his treasured possession. It was not because you were more numerous than any other people that the Lord set his heart on you and chose you--for you were the fewest of all peoples."
I find the idea that God has a people that are claimed as "treasured possessions." It's nice to be claimed and treasured. It's nice to know that God has a chosen people - the people of the covenant who promise to always serve God and God promises to always be God.
But I find it especially intriguing that the text claims that the people were chosen because they were small in number. God didn't choose the biggest nation to be God's people. God "set his heart" on the fewest of all people.
It seems to me that there is something biblical about the blessings of smallness. When the shepherd looses one sheep, out of 100, he abandons the 99 in order to find the one lost little lamb. When the woman looses her coin, she abandons all in order to find the one small coin. When Jesus speaks about the mustard seed, he comments on the smallness of the seed - and what latent potential the small seed has. In Jesus' ministry, he only gathered 12 people around him to do his work - and even then he formed an "inner circle" of three that he spoke with most often. (And I know there is deliberate symbolism in the gospels - 12 disciples; 12 tribes of Israel.) Faith like a child (although you could argue about the "small-ness" of children's faith; in many ways a child's faith is bigger...and shrinks as one matures) is enough to move mountains and to be welcomed by Jesus in his lap.
The bible -- and God -- hold a special, blessed place for small. I believe this is counter to our current cultural context. Bigger is better to much of the world. Our culture values bigger bank accounts, bigger muscles (and other body parts - thanks to silicone and botox), bigger trucks, vans, and SUVS, bigger personalities, bigger houses and lawns, bigger burgers (Super-sized), bigger portions, bigger privileges, bigger drama, bigger...well bigger. If you buy into some of the dominant messages of the media, than you know that bigger is better on many levels.
The church sometimes falls into this trap. Bigger numbers in worship, bigger budgets, bigger buildings and programs that attract bigger groups. Bigger in everything except faith.
I think that maybe there is something to this notion that God has a special place for things that are small. And I think that when we get our porportions under control (and more appropriate) that being small has the potential to enlarge our faith.
There is a great song by one of my favorite singer-songwriters, David Wilcox, called "Hold It Up To The Light." It's a song about discernment. And there is a line that says something like, if the choice were always clear and easy, I'd never have a chance to exercize my faith." I think that when everything is large and big then it is more difficult for faith to be challenged and grow.
Dear God,
Help me to think small. Help me to curb my own desires to be more than you intend me to be. Heal my unhealthy boudaries so that your presence in my life might enlarge. Give me the faith to trust in you and follow in your ways. Amen.
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