“On October 17 of that same year, the LORD sent another message through the prophet Haggai. “Say this to Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Jeshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to the remnant of God’s people there in the land: Is there anyone who can remember this house–the Temple–as it was before? In comparison, how does it look to you now? It must seem like nothing at all!” Haggai 2:2,3 NLT
It is true, Christian; We serve the God who pasted the stars into Heaven; We serve the God who built the storehouses of the snow (let’s just say it He came up with snow); We serve the God who destroyed the world by flood and who parted the Red Sea; He is the God who caused the sun to stand still for a day and who caused the sun to go backwards; He is the God who killed all the first-born of Egypt and the God who raised His own Son from the dead.
He is the God of all these tremendous acts and more. Why is it, then, that to us at moments He seems so amazingly underwhelming?
I think I just heard a lot of hands slapping over open mouths. Some of you just said “I can’t believe He said that.”
I’m just being real here. God is just not that awesome to most people. We know the stories. We believe them. Still, as C.S. Lewis said, most of us live our lives as practical atheists.
It’s not that we don’t want to believe. It’s just that out believing God is really restricted by our ability to see what He is doing.
God understood this about the Israelites. He knew what the new temple built under Zerubbabel would elicit as a reaction:
“Really!? That’s it? I thought it’d be bigger.”
“That’s the best we could do? Maybe I should worship Zeus His temple’s huge!”
” Last time I donate to a building project here.”
How things looked greatly affected the Israelites faith and to them things looked…little. Some of them, like some us, suffered with the mindset “little temple little God”.
That mindset is wrong!
The truth is God is the big God of little things. He chooses at times to use things that are weak, broken, little, old, and poor. He proves Himself to be the God of great miracles precisely because the vessels He chooses to flow through are so utterly useless, helpless, and itty-bitty.
As men and women of faith we have to stop relying on our human sight for understanding. We have to begin acknowledging that when things start looking smallish, when the battle seems to be going against us that is precisely when God is working.
The Father gave the Israelites a little divine encouragement concerning their little temple in Jerusalem.
“The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, says the LORD Almighty. The future glory of this Temple will be greater than its past glory, says the LORD Almighty. And in this place I will bring peace. I, the LORD Almighty, have spoken!” Haggai 2: 8,9 NLT
I want to tell you Christian, if your dealing with a situation right now that seems a little less than what you had hoped, just know God is working. The future glory will be greater than you could imagine. You serve the big God of little things. Receive the little now and let Him make it much in His time.
What investment in His kingdom are you waiting to see a return on?
Reinventing the We'll 
Oh, oh oh – how you spoke to me today. I have really been caught up in this remodeling my bathroom project, and as you know, since cancer, I move slowly. It just was seeming overwhelming and impossible and you rminde me that God is a Master Builder and has always volunteered to be in charge, if I let him!! Thank you, Thank you.
You are most welcome Cherry! I hope you can get the project done before the hot Texas summer moves in!
Thank You.
“As men and women of faith we have to stop relying on our human sight for understanding. We have to begin acknowledging that when things start looking smallish, when the battle seems to be going against us that is precisely when God is working.”
Isn’t that the truth!! ( I did a double take when I read this part of your post). ‘The natural reaction is for faith to fade “when things start looking smallish” . Only through His eyes can we see differently… Yeppers. He’s right there in the background doing what He does best but we can’t see it unless we will ourselves to remove our blinders.
Thanks for the poke and the encouragement!
Blessings,
ann
I have spent much time feeling smallish lately. Yet in it God has really been doing a deep work in me that I am pretty sure He could have done no other way. My hope is that through this I will be a more powerful encouragement to the children of God than I ever was before. If He can just accomplish that I will be blessed! Thanks for commenting
How ignorant is my thinking sometimes in terms of the “little things” in life! (gosh, how short-sighted shall we be? I mean…we judge the “bigness” or “littleness” of things as if we have any clue of their ultimate importance! — WE DON’T!–:) Just reminds me how so many of our “little…inconsequential acts” are much more profound to us than we imagine…I know they are more profound to God!:) Anyway, reading your post, I’m reminded of Andrew Murray’s book, “humility.” He writes:
“The life God bestows is imparted not once for all, but each moment continuously, by the unceasing operation of his mighty power. Humility, the place of entire dependence on God, is, from the very nature of things, the first duty and the highest virtue of the creature, and the root of every virtue.”
I wish we could understand this simple truth. In our weakness and in our humility, His grace (defined as “divine influence upon the human soul and it’s expression in our lives) is more than sufficient. It is in the midst of us being “little” that we start to see how big He truly is!
A-men. In our weakness He is made strong!
“As men and women of faith we have to stop relying on our human sight for understanding.” So good! I’m so guilty of that sometimes… God really is so much bigger than our minds can comprehend!!
Tonight we heard a word from the Lord in service. “What you have committed to the Lord leave in His hands. Do not take it back!”
How tempting is it when we are standing on the promises to see with our human eyes and look at the conditions around us rather than at the word we have been given?
Yet God is more than able because as you said, He is bigger than our minds can comprehend.
Thanks Nicole for sharing.