What does it mean to be faithful in the little things? Is this always referring to money or success?
I wonder if being faithful in the little things is more of a charge for us to trust God through obedience. Cara, a friend of mine, encouraged all of us at our community group to be good stewards of our obedience. This profound idea has helped me understand “small” faithfulness.
God has given us plenty of encouragement, instruction, parable, and parameter to successfully live a life of yielding to him, but if we do not obey, how can we be faithful? When someone wrongs us, we are told to bless and do not curse. When there is temptation to participate in less than completely honest business, we are reminded that God detests uneven weights and measures…and that ill-gotten gain will not last. When we are tempted to be harsh and unforgiving with our words, God reminds us to be temperate and kind…slow to anger, and quick to listen. When we are taken advantage of, God reminds us to “let him have your coat also.” When we are tempted to be selfish and concerned solely with our own affairs, God reminds us to consider others before ourselves. All of these charges, when we choose to obey, are “small” matters of faithfulness! When we are monitoring and stewarding our obedience, we are showing ourselves to be transformed by the Spirit, and it is by that Spirit that we are able to continue in the faithfulness to show ourselves to be trustworthy for greater things. Not necessarily greater things in the worldly sense per se, but greater things for the purposes of God as he has allotted for each of us according to the gifts he has given us.