Lately, I’ve been seeing God move in exciting ways- touching people’s lives and changing hearts and really showing Himself faithful in all kinds of situations. It’s been thrilling to tell people about what He’s doing, and then see Him do even more. It’s got me asking for more and more opportunities to see His glory… And then last week, I was tested.
I didn’t see it as a test at the time- I suppose I rarely recognize a test while it’s happening. In this case, while parallel parking, I hit the car behind me. The driver was nowhere around, and I was sure I just bumped the license plate- just a little kiss. (Still, so embarrassing!) But when I got out and looked, there was some damage to the other car’s bumper. The dent didn’t look new. In fact, I was convinced it must have already been there. And if I left a note, the car’s owner could lie and say I caused the damage. If that happened, how could I prove otherwise? So, really, if I didn’t do any harm, what would be the point of leaving a note? It could only cause trouble, right? I confess, I really wrestled with what to do. Thankfully, the Lord helped me figure it out. Jesus had some relevant instruction for us all when He said this to His disciples:
"If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones. But if you are dishonest in little things, you won't be honest with greater responsibilities. And if you are untrustworthy about worldly wealth, who will trust you with the true riches of heaven? (Luke 16:10-11 NLT)
How can God trust me to be a part of all the glorious, eternal things He’s doing if He can’t even trust me to take responsibility for my own mistakes and do the right thing? Thankfully, He helped me realize that and I left a note. The test was real, though- I had to sweat it out until the next morning when I got a text from the car’s owner: he said he didn’t see any damage that wasn’t there already, and thanked me for being a good neighbor!
It was completely God’s grace that I didn’t chicken out of leaving that note, and so He gets the glory for all His faithfulness. I pray that He continues to help us become more like Him: faithful in all things, whether big or small.
We want to be containers of God’s glory. But we must be faithful in little, so God can trust us with His glory. (excerpt from Walking in Your True Identity Part 1 by Pastor Vondalier Pipkin)
