THE POWER IN THE LITTLE

There is a popular adage that says “Little drops of water makes a mighty ocean”.Humans as we are, we are quick to belittle things that are minute or small. This is because little things don’t seem viable to us. We make this judgment based on our sight. It would be erroneous to judge the viability of something based on what our eyes tell us and not based on what our minds, instincts or soul tells us.

Let me digress a little and quickly tell you some three Biblical stories that show the power in the “little”.

A large crowd followed Jesus and at a point in time, His disciples told him to send them away so they can go get food to eat. Jesus answered his disciples “They don’t have to leave, you yourselves give them something to eat!” One of his disciples replied, “It would take more than half a year’s wages to buy enough bread for each one to have a bite”. Another of his disciples spoke up “Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?” Jesus then took the loaves and fish, gave thanks and asked his disciples to distribute it to the multitudes. Everybody had enough to eat when the loaves were distributed. The number of men who ate was about 5000, not counting the women and children.

Once upon a time, a poor widow whose late husband left her with debts approached the prophet Elisha for help. Elisha asked the widow “Tell me, what have you got at home?” Nothing at all, except a small jar of olive oil,” she answered. Elisha told her to go borrow as many empty jars as she can from her neighbors. He then asked her to pour the oil into the jars and set each one aside as soon as it is full. She did as she was told and all the jars were full. When she reported to Elisha he asked the widow to sell the olive oil and pay all her debts.

The scenarios are instances of lack we face almost every day. What changed the ending of these two stories is perception. All one party could see was an insufficiency in the little they had while the other party saw sufficiency in the insignificant little. Most at times when we’re faced with challenges, we’re quick to seek solutions from outside rather than look within us. There is the probability that, the solutions to most of our problems are right under our nose but we fail to recognize them because they are in the form of the inconspicuous little that we have.

The disciples of Jesus came to a hasty conclusion that, there was no food while there was food even though it was little. Same thing the widow did. This is because the disciples and the widow didn’t recognize the little as viable enough to change their story for good.

The truth is, the “little” would always be insignificant to the eye but to the mind, it has the power to multiply. The little would always remain insignificant when not used but when put to good use, it has the power to make an impact and that’s what Jesus and Elisha demonstrated. Imagine what would have happened if Jesus and Elisha had adopted the mindset that the disciples and widow had.

Most of our problems are big in nature but it takes just a small, simple solution to solve them. Any time you’re faced with a challenge, look carefully within your circle. There’s a probability that the solution to your problem is right under your nose. Always remember, the “little” is only significant when left unused. Its viability lies in it being used to meet a need”.