Immanuel

Love is patient.

Not because people are easy to love.
Not because circumstances are always favorable.
But because God is patient with us.

"The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love." — Psalm 103:8

Before patience is displayed outwardly, it is built inwardly.

The building blocks of patience are:

🧱 Faith and trust in Christ and His promises
Patience grows when we believe God is working, even when we can't see it.

🧱 Humility
Patience grows when we remember it's not all about us. Our preferences, our timelines, and our expectations are not the center of the story.

"Love is patient..." — 1 Corinthians 13:4

The more we trust God and humble ourselves, the more patience becomes the natural expression of love.

LITTLE THINGS MATTER! I took my grandson, Jaxon, to see Patterson Mill's high school baseball team play for the state championship. I walked away with the lesson that LITTLE THINGS MATTER and sometimes determine the difference between achieving your goal and just falling short. LITTLE THINGS MATTER, like a pitch landing 2 inches in any direction to allow a catcher to block it, a base runner getting a half step larger secondary lead to allow him to slide under a tag at home plate, or a runner rounding third base with head up, instead of just running to the bag with head down. If attention had been paid to those little things, and the ball had just landed 2 inches in any direction, the outcome may have been different for those young men.

Reflecting back on that game has caused me to think about how LITTLE THINGS MATTER in our daily lives, our families, and our walk with Christ. Little things like what do we do when we think no one is looking? How do I choose to invest my free time? Small habits, or disciplines, practiced over and over make a huge difference. It's what we practice daily that shows up when the pressure is on. Pressure and crises don't necessarily develop discipline and character as much as they reveal them.
That game has caused me to examine what small disciplines I can practice daily to help prepare me for when life turns sideways, upside down or just crashes.

It is those small things that are stacked over and over that can make all the difference when it really counts. Am I in His Word daily, not to prepare a message, but to know the Father deeper? Do I pause to express gratitude for each day and moment? Yes, LITTLE THINGS MATTER!

Why do you do what you do?

At home.
On social media.
At work.
In the church.

Why do you speak up?
Why do you stay silent?

Is it for recognition?
Likes?
Approval?
To prove someone wrong?
Because it fills a need?
Because you love it?
Because you’re gifted at it?

Are you doing it to get a response…
or in response to what God has already done for you?

The world teaches us to perform.
But the Kingdom calls us to serve.

Not for applause.
Not for attention.
Not for validation.

But because we are part of the Body of Christ, each with a purpose, each with a calling. ❤️