We have a children’s book in our house entitled, A Small Thing, But Big. It tells the story of a little girl and her mother who meet an old man walking his dog in the park.
The little girl is first very intimidated by the little dog. With time, however, she musters the courage to approach the dog. She watches the dog closely, speaks to his owner, and eventually learns he isn’t an animal she needs to fear. Eventually, the little girl reaches out her hand and pets the dog. And with a little more time, she cautiously but courageously accepts the leash from the owner and begins walking the dog around the park all by herself.
I enjoy reading this with my children. I can see myself in the shoes of the girl’s mother in the story as she watched the little girl stand a little taller with each step she took around the park that day. The story reminds us that life is full of small, but big things. Some of these things, we do on our own. Other things, we do in the company of others. But each time we step out in faith, we trust that we are going with God’s help.
On Sunday, March 4th, three of the young people who have been here at St. Stephen’s since they were just babies are going to do a small, but big thing. They are going to be confirmed.
On their confirmation day, Anna Gresham, Fran, and Whit will stand before our Bishop and tell the whole church that they fully intend to keep the promises that were made on their behalf at their baptisms. They all were baptized before they were old enough to speak for themselves, and so this will be their opportunity to make a public commitment to serve in the name of our life-giving God.
I look forward to gathering with them on Sunday, and I especially look forward to continuing to watch each of them stand a bit taller and more confident as disciples of Jesus through the coming years. With just 30 days remaining in Lent, I encourage all of us to continue doing the small but big things that make this season of Lent a holy one. Be diligent in prayer and worship, take courage in giving of yourselves to serve, and trust that the crosses we carry lead not to death but to life.
Giulianna+