“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”
Lao Tsu
30 And he said, Whereunto shall we liken the kingdom of God? or with what comparison shall we compare it? 31 It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is sown in the earth, is less than all the seeds that be in the earth: 32 But when it is sown, it groweth up, and becometh greater than all herbs, and shooteth out great branches; so that the fowls of the air may lodge under the shadow of it.
Mark 4:30-32
Overwhelmed?
Have you ever felt overwhelmed by your to-do list, or even just getting out of bed some mornings? Some might say we should just wallow for a while because we deserve a break. Others might say pull yourself up by the bootstraps and get it done. The best answer lies somewhere in between. If we rest too long, it becomes harder and harder to move. Yet, trying to do it all in our own strength is exhausting. So, what’s a girl to do?
While the road to hell is paved with good intentions, the path of faith is traversed following our guide one step at a time.
Baby Steps
For who hath despised the day of small things? for they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven; they are the eyes of the Lord, which run to and fro through the whole earth.
Zechariah 4:10
In the book Atomic Habits, James Clear writes about one percent growth or increase. That doesn’t sound very impressive does it? However, the mustard seed is the smallest of all seeds, yet it grows into the largest of the herb trees. It doesn’t happen overnight though; it happens a little bit every day.
If we will take a baby step, it can be the first step of many. If we just do one small thing in faith, then our faith will grow. What can you do today to take a baby step in faith?
Strength in Weakness
And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
2 Corinthians 12:9
As our faith begins to mature, our path will often become rocky and seem impassable. How will we ever get past ____ (fill in the blank)? We do it by admitting that we can’t do it alone. We have to give everything over to God and be a willing vessel for Him to use. Then, in His strength we will overcome whatever we face.
Faith to Move Mountains
And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.
Matthew 17:20
Once our faith has been rooted in the Word of God and experience along the journey, then we will have grown up tall and be full of branches that reach out to comfort others who are also on the journey. Then, nothing will be impossible because nothing is impossible for God who is working through us. When we are standing tall in faith, our desires should be aligned with God’s will. That is when we will take great leaps of faith and see God move mountains.
The Journey Begins
The trailhead of faith begins at salvation, and each step afterward we follow the steps of Jesus who blazed the trail and listen to the leading of our knowledgeable guide, The Holy Spirit. It’s not always an easy path and is often filled with ups and downs and obstacles to overcome, yet it is also filled with glorious overlooks into eternity. So, take one baby step and then another until you hit your stride, but don’t be afraid to take a break once in a while to look around you and enjoy the scenery.
So, if you’re like me, take the first step by climbing out of bed and see what adventures the day holds one step at a time.
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Love the imagery! Our walk with the Lord is exciting but has it’s challenges along the way. It is much like starting and continuing a hike, if you’ve ever been on one. You know that the journey may be lengthy but as you put one foot in front of the other you encounter and experience things that you must overcome and wonders that you would not have experienced had you not taken that first step. Eventually, when you get to the summit, you take it all in and experience the accomplishment that came about as a result of an accumulation of steps. Kind of like the song… “Count Your Many Blessings”name the one by one. How God blesses us along our journey when we decide to take a step.
Thanks Linda!!
“If we will take a baby step, it can be the first step of many. If we just do one small thing in faith, then our faith will grow.”
This is so encouraging! How many of us give up because we can’t accomplish our goal as quickly as we’d like? I relate this to how hard it was for me to work up to running a mile (back in the days when I wanted to do that). My baby step was 15 seconds running alternated with 15 seconds walking for a total of ten minutes. Otherwise I was defeated before I started.
I’m thinking about ways I can apply the baby step philosophy to my faith walk. Thank you.