Don’t despise humble beginnings.
Picture a small one story house. Now picture a large two story addition added on to this small one story house. It kind of looks out of place. Like a small car pulling a tractor trailer:). This is the image that God gave me in a dream and He called it “Humble Beginnings.”
Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin, to see the plumb line in Zerubbabel’s hand.
Zechariah 4:10a
I have always seen things visually and often that’s how God reveals things to me. In this dream, my husband and I were driving up a mountain. We lived close to the top but not quite at the top. The house where we lived had a beautiful view and it was a beautiful house. But I knew it wasn’t God’s best for us. So we kept driving.
Up, up, up…
When we reached the top there were just a few houses scattered around but my eyes (and my heart) went straight towards a small farmhouse. This home had a really large two story addition behind it. It was all white with a red roof and red shutters. I can still see it vividly in my head. Why a white farmhouse with a red roof and red shutters?
My good and loving Father knows my heart’s desires.
He knows this would be my dream home. He knows all of our hearts’ desires. Doesn’t that give you so much hope and anticipation?
As perfect as this house was for me and my family, what captivated me most was the view. The view was unlike anything I’ve ever seen. It’s hard to put in words. It was majestic and inspiring. It was as if I could see everything in Heaven and earth. There was nothing out of sight (or out of reach).
But God said it isn’t time yet.
He gave me a glimpse of what will one day be. This dream was months ago and I can still remember it very clearly. Here’s the parallel to life that He is giving me to share with each of you.
Enjoy the present moment.
You are right where He wants you to be. While we are all on that journey up the mountain, He wants us to enjoy where we are for it is good and perfect. And it is a gift from Him! We have all we can handle and, as long as we steward that well, He will continue to grow us and give us increase. Much like the little farmhouse. It started small and was able to expand and grow over time.
Not only are His gifts given to us bit-by-bit, His vision for our lives is also given to us in pieces. A couple of years ago, God gave me a verse that has become a building block in everything that He has given me since. This verse keeps me focused so that I don’t become discouraged by what I don’t have. It somehow gives me an eager anticipation of knowing the good things to come so that I don’t live dreading what’s around the corner. Can you relate to that? I used to live waiting for the worst. However, when He gave me this verse, He slowly changed my perspective from fearing the worst to anticipating the best.
Little by little I will drive them out from before you, until you have increased, and you inherit the land.
Exodus 23:30
Our Father is soooo good to us that He will not – He cannot – give us more than we can handle because He knows it could destroy us. He knows our frame. He knows what we can bear. So he must increase us little by little until we are capable of receiving the “more” that He wants us to have.
It’s kind of like introducing foods to a baby.
We can’t give a baby filet mignon as his first food. He wouldn’t be able to handle it. He would choke and could possibly strangle on it. So we start out by introducing soft, mushed-up foods one at a time to test what the baby can tolerate. As he tolerates those foods, more is introduced. This is exactly what God does for us. Out of His pure and unconditional love for us, He feeds us what we are able to tolerate. And the more we can tolerate, the more that is given.
I heard a very powerful sermon on our mortality last night and God brought this dream of the little farmhouse back to me. Hopefully, I can tie my thoughts together for you. In the dream, God was showing me more of His world and less of this world that we live in. This is what He wants to show all of us. We should be living lives where Heaven and earth collide right before us. The more of God that we seek, the more of God that we get. And as we go deeper into who He is, the more of this world we leave behind. Heaven invades earth. Light overcomes darkness. Death is no longer terrifying because you have glimpses of where you will spend eternity.
Yesterday was Ash Wednesday and our preacher said for us to think of the ashes we received in remembrance of our mortality. In remembrance of “dust to dust.” He challenged us to live the next 40 days with our mortality in the forefront of our thoughts. If we do this, would we find certain things as important as we do now? Would we spend our precious moments dashing to and fro?
How would we spend our last few days?
- With family?
- With God in prayer and meditation?
- Alone locked in a room preserving all those words and thoughts we want to leave behind?
Our preacher also asked if we were to write our own obituary, what would it say? WOW. Have you ever thought to sit down and write your own obituary? It has never entered my mind. But since last night I’ve been thinking of it – a lot! I don’t want my obituary to read like a resume with a list of my past accomplishments. I want my obituary to glorify Jesus and Jesus alone. I want people to want to know Him as a result of reading about my life. I want people to see the little by little given to me by God and how it creates a beautiful love story between Creator and His creation. I want people to see the “humble beginnings” along with the “additions” that have been given as good and perfect gifts from a good and perfect Father.
What do you want people to see when they read your obituary? Accept the challenge. If your life does not reflect what you want to see written in the paper, make some changes. God wants us to spend time with Him as our friend. He wants intimacy with each of us. Get before Him today. This is your chance to re-write your legacy.
Stay in the Light and the Love Always,
Eva
