The Little Things

Bible Reading: Colossians 3:17, 22-24

“I wish I could do more to help at vacation Bible school,” Amina said as she left the church with her mother. “Today I only helped with little things—like showing some kids where they had to go and picking up paper after the kids were gone.” Amina sighed. “How old do I have to be before I can do something to really help—something important, like teaching?”

“Amina, what you do now helps so much!” said Mom, who was the VBS director. But Amina wasn’t convinced.

That evening, Mom handed Amina a card. “This is from me,” she said.

Amina smiled when she saw the words THANK YOU in big letters on the front of the card. She opened it and looked at the message inside. It was as follows:

thankyouaminaforyourhelpatvbsthelittlethingsyoudoreallyareimportantandimproudyouaremydaughteriloveyouverymuch

Amina laughed. “This is a puzzle, right?” she asked as she tried to read it.

“No—it’s a message I want to share with you,” said Mom.

Amina frowned. “But you didn’t put periods and commas or any punctuation in your message, and you didn’t put capital letters on any of the words. You didn’t even put spaces between words!”

Mom shrugged. “So? Spaces and punctuation are such little things. They don’t really matter, do they?”

“Of course they do! They’re important even though they’re little. Without them, it’s…well, it’s really hard to read!”

Mom’s eyes twinkled as she nodded. “Spaces and punctuation marks are little things, but they’re really important—and so are the things we do to serve the Lord. Even when a task we’re given seems small, Jesus uses our faithful work to help people know He loves them. Christians must work together to share the message that Jesus died and rose again to save us, but that message would be hard to read without the little things, wouldn’t it?” Mom smiled at Amina. “Any time you think the little things you do at VBS aren’t important, remember this card and the little things that were missing in it.”

Amina grinned and looked at the card again. “Okay,” she said. “Tomorrow I’ll do whatever you need me to at vacation Bible school.”

-Sara L. Nelson

How About You?

Do you sometimes feel as though the jobs you do aren’t important? No matter how big or little a job seems, Jesus promises to use your work for good and to bring people to Him. Remember that He’s the one you’re serving, and be faithful in the tasks you’re given at home, school, and church. Trust Him to use your work to share His message of love with others.

Today’s Key Verse:
Luke 16:10 If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones. (NLT)

Today’s Key Thought:

Little things are important