The Big Power of Little Things

 

“It’s the little details that are vital. 

Little things make big things happen.”  John Wooden

 
I thought that the caption of the story should have been, “That’s the night that the lights went out in Toronto.” On the evening of February 1^st, about 7,000 customers in the city’s downtown lost power for more than two hours after a raccoon made contact with a transformer at a transmission station. I guess “made contact” is polite way of saying “roast racoon.”
  One raccoon – 7,000 people without power. Players had to leave mid-game in local dodgeball games when the power went out. Others were trapped in elevators mid-journey. Little things make a big difference.
  John Wooden, one of the greatest basketball coaches of all time, believed in the importance of the little things. He won ten NCAA national championships in a 12-year period as head coach for UCLA.
  Do you know the first lesson that this great coach taught his new freshmen recruits? How to tie their shoes. They’d be ready to roll all day that first time out. Just before the start, always at 3:30 p.m. sharp, Coach Wooden called all the freshmen together and walked them into the locker room. There, he sat down on a stool and began his lecture. They’d sit there ready to soak it all up, knowing that he was about to give them the keys to greatness, show the path to becoming the next great team in history. Wooden’s first words were, “Men, this is how you put your shoes and socks on.” John Wooden won by teaching his players to focus on the little things first. Think about how the little things make a big difference.
  Smile. Remember how much we lost with masks? You had to try to find smiling eyes. A simple smile can change a person’s day.
  A smile is a powerful thing, especially when offered with love, kindness, and acceptance. When you walk into a store, would you rather see a smile or a scowl? Do you want a grumpy server or a cheerful one? When you come home, do you want to be greeted by a smile or a frown?
  Did you know that you can hear a smile? When someone answers a phone, you can tell whether they’re smiling. A smile changes your voice.
  If anyone should be smiling, shouldn’t it be Christ-followers? Aren’t we to be the people of joy? We know that we’re loved with an unconditional love. We’ve been forgiven of a debt we could never pay. We’re never alone. And the worst hell of this world is temporary, but Home with Jesus is forever. Are you a Christ-follower? Does your face show it?
  Tables. Traffic in drive-thrus rose 30% from 2019 to 2022, according to foodservice research firm Technomic. Drive-thrus now account for two-thirds of all fast-food purchases. Overall, 60% of Americans admit to eating while driving on a semi-regular basis, with 7% of the nation chowing down while driving every single day.
  Though it’s not always possible to have a homecooked meal, think though how much we lose by eating on the run instead of sitting at a table together. Sitting at a table and engaging with each other makes a big difference. It means that the smart phones are put away so we can focus.   
  Read the New Testament and you’ll see a powerful pattern of people getting to know each other, drawing closer together as they ate a meal together. It doesn’t have to be fancy. It could be ice cream. It’s gathering around a small table that makes a big difference.
  Names. The Bible tells us that God knows our name. Knowing someone’s name, really knowing them, says that you care, especially if it’s unusual and you work to pronounce or spell it correctly. Most parents struggle with naming a child with the right name. Knowing someone’s name begins to slowly pull back the layers and increase intimacy. It lets us know them for who they are. There’s power in being known and accepted.
  Names remind us of our humanity. The government may only know us by a string of numbers, but a loving God designed each of us individually. It’s why it’s important when we’re in a store or restaurant to call the person serving us by their name. They’re not some anatomical robot – they’re Imago Dei. Not only did He design them, He loved them and gave His Son to die for them. He knows their name, shouldn’t we?
  300 seconds. That’s five minutes. If you were eating your favorite meal, say lobster or a T-bone steak, do you want to wolf it down? Or would you rather chew and salivate every bite? If you’re out with good friends and you’re all laughing and just enjoying each other, do you find yourself finally noticing the time and asking, “where did the time go?” If you’re going to see a movie that you’ve been dying to see, do you arrive five minutes early or five minutes late? What about if it’s your favorite team? When you’re at the doctor’s office and you’re concerned, do you want him to deal with you like you’re in a drive-thru? Or do you want him to take his time and find out what’s really wrong with you?
  Five minutes early or five minutes late? On Sundays when we’re seeing our brothers and sisters for the only time during the week, when it’s the only time we can touch each other’s lives and have ours touched, do we really want to rush in and out? What does that say about our understanding of Scripture of spiritual family and the value of our brothers and sisters? Do we have five minutes for that single sitting alone or that parent who brought their children by themselves? Do we have five minutes for that new person, who’s nervous because they may never have been in church before or not a for a long time? Do we really believe that it’s the pastor’s job, not our responsibility? Do we really want to run over others because we need those five minutes, we just have so much to do? What if you knew it would be the last time, you’d see that person…because it could be? Most of us long for five more minutes with a loved one that’s now gone. Five minutes, just 300 seconds – it can be a lot in someone’s life.
  Jesus said, “If you had faith like a grain of mustard seed…” (Luke 17:6). That’s so small but what a difference! Little things can be huge!

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