Small Things
Jul 20
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Lisa Keosababian
In a culture that values bigger, faster, and stronger, my quiet life as a spiritual director sometimes seems a bit small. I start to worry: Shouldn’t I be doing more? Shouldn’t I be busier and more productive? Shouldn’t my ministry be bigger? Shouldn’t I do more to respond to the many problems of this world?
I’ve found Jesus’ parables of the mustard seed and yeast to be helpful in these moments (Matthew 13: 31-33). These parables remind me that Jesus values our small acts of love and faithfulness. I like the way Eugene Peterson expressed it: “When it comes to doing something about what is wrong in the world, Jesus is best known for his fondness for the tiny, the invisible, the quiet, the slow: yeast, salt, seeds.”1
In the parable of the mustard seed, a farmer planted a seed, which grew to become a large shrub where birds could nest. The tiny seed grew from being the size of a small morsel of bird food to being big enough to hide and shelter a bird. As a gardener, I’m often amazed by seeds and how each seed has the potential to become a specific kind of plant. Great potential is held within each seed.
We all have seeds that we plant each day. Seeds of love, kindness, and faithfulness. Some are so ordinary that we don’t even notice ourselves planting them. These seeds matter in the kingdom of God. Sometimes they have an impact beyond what their smallness would suggest.
Pause to reflect on a time when someone did something small, but significant and meaningful for you. Remember what they did and how it made you feel. Give thanks for this person.
The parable of yeast is the story of a woman who mixed some leaven into flour until it was all leavened. The Greek word that is often translated as “mixed” means “hid,” which is a fun and unexpected word choice. The baker hid the yeast in the dough until it was completely indistinguishable and inseparable from the flour. As she did this, the yeast transformed the dough from a stodgy mix of flour and water into a dough that can rise and expand. As a bread baker, I marvel at the impact of a small amount of yeast or sourdough starter. Without it, the bread would be a heavy brick. With it, the bread rises and becomes light, airy, and delicious.
I like to imagine that our acts of love, kindness, and faithfulness are adding some of Jesus’ leaven into the world. These acts can feel hidden. We often don’t know their impact. (Think of the person who did something small for you. Do they know the impact of what they did?)
As Andi Ashworth wrote, “It’s impossible to know all the unseen work that God is accomplishing in our lives, in our time, in the life of the world.”2 So much is hidden from view. We often can’t see the fruit of what we are doing, but we can trust God’s faithfulness.
Even when we feel lonely or invisible in our work, God sees us and our small things. God loves us and values us.
Even when we don’t think we are doing enough, God is using our acts of love, kindness, and faithfulness in ways beyond what we can see and imagine. Who knows what unexpected fruit they might bear?
We can trust that God is working through small things and in hidden ways.
For reflection:
Spend some time talking to God about this.
1. Eugene Peterson, As Kingfishers Catch Fire (New York: WaterBrook, 2017), 253.
2. Charlie Peacock and Andi Ashworth, Why Everything That Doesn’t Matter, Matters So Much: The Way of Love in a World of Hurt (Nashville TN: W Publishing, 2024), 221.
I’ve found Jesus’ parables of the mustard seed and yeast to be helpful in these moments (Matthew 13: 31-33). These parables remind me that Jesus values our small acts of love and faithfulness. I like the way Eugene Peterson expressed it: “When it comes to doing something about what is wrong in the world, Jesus is best known for his fondness for the tiny, the invisible, the quiet, the slow: yeast, salt, seeds.”1
In the parable of the mustard seed, a farmer planted a seed, which grew to become a large shrub where birds could nest. The tiny seed grew from being the size of a small morsel of bird food to being big enough to hide and shelter a bird. As a gardener, I’m often amazed by seeds and how each seed has the potential to become a specific kind of plant. Great potential is held within each seed.
We all have seeds that we plant each day. Seeds of love, kindness, and faithfulness. Some are so ordinary that we don’t even notice ourselves planting them. These seeds matter in the kingdom of God. Sometimes they have an impact beyond what their smallness would suggest.
Pause to reflect on a time when someone did something small, but significant and meaningful for you. Remember what they did and how it made you feel. Give thanks for this person.
The parable of yeast is the story of a woman who mixed some leaven into flour until it was all leavened. The Greek word that is often translated as “mixed” means “hid,” which is a fun and unexpected word choice. The baker hid the yeast in the dough until it was completely indistinguishable and inseparable from the flour. As she did this, the yeast transformed the dough from a stodgy mix of flour and water into a dough that can rise and expand. As a bread baker, I marvel at the impact of a small amount of yeast or sourdough starter. Without it, the bread would be a heavy brick. With it, the bread rises and becomes light, airy, and delicious.
I like to imagine that our acts of love, kindness, and faithfulness are adding some of Jesus’ leaven into the world. These acts can feel hidden. We often don’t know their impact. (Think of the person who did something small for you. Do they know the impact of what they did?)
As Andi Ashworth wrote, “It’s impossible to know all the unseen work that God is accomplishing in our lives, in our time, in the life of the world.”2 So much is hidden from view. We often can’t see the fruit of what we are doing, but we can trust God’s faithfulness.
Even when we feel lonely or invisible in our work, God sees us and our small things. God loves us and values us.
Even when we don’t think we are doing enough, God is using our acts of love, kindness, and faithfulness in ways beyond what we can see and imagine. Who knows what unexpected fruit they might bear?
We can trust that God is working through small things and in hidden ways.
For reflection:
- Where do you need encouragement that your small things matter?
- In what situation would you like to ask for a glimpse of God’s hidden activity?
Spend some time talking to God about this.
1. Eugene Peterson, As Kingfishers Catch Fire (New York: WaterBrook, 2017), 253.
2. Charlie Peacock and Andi Ashworth, Why Everything That Doesn’t Matter, Matters So Much: The Way of Love in a World of Hurt (Nashville TN: W Publishing, 2024), 221.
Lisa Keosababian
Lisa is drawn to spiritual direction as a spacious place for listening and paying attention to life and to God. She is honored to listen to people’s stories and to see God’s love for each person. Lisa holds an MA in Spiritual Formation and a Certificate in Spiritual Direction from Portland Seminary, and a Master of Public Administration from the University of Washington. Her first career as a program evaluator and research analyst involved listening to the professional stories of many state government and nonprofit employees. Lisa lives with her husband in Woodinville WA. She enjoys reading, walking, and birding.
You can connect with Lisa at www.spiritualdirectionwithlisa.com.
Lisa is drawn to spiritual direction as a spacious place for listening and paying attention to life and to God. She is honored to listen to people’s stories and to see God’s love for each person. Lisa holds an MA in Spiritual Formation and a Certificate in Spiritual Direction from Portland Seminary, and a Master of Public Administration from the University of Washington. Her first career as a program evaluator and research analyst involved listening to the professional stories of many state government and nonprofit employees. Lisa lives with her husband in Woodinville WA. She enjoys reading, walking, and birding.
You can connect with Lisa at www.spiritualdirectionwithlisa.com.
