I remember the year I decided to take a big challenge to grow in faith. An author I followed at the time challenged her readers to join her in reading through the entire Bible during Lent. Up until that time, I had only read from Genesis to Revelation a couple of times, and both times it took more than a year. I wondered: Could I actually read the Bible from beginning to end in forty days?
I decided to take the challenge. And it turned out that reading the whole Bible in such a short amount of time helped me better understand the arc of God’s saving work through history. I made new connections between the Old and New Testaments.
But do we always need huge assignments to grow in faith? In this world that celebrates big, we may think we must always accomplish big tasks like reading through the entire Bible. Or signing up for a two-week mission trip. Or serving on a board of a church or non-profit.
While God can stretch and grow our faith in all of those wonderful pursuits, sometimes He also works in the small things.
Recently, I have found five tiny practices that have accomplished great things in my spiritual life:
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1. One Small Spiritual Practice
I love spiritual disciplines like Lectio Divina and Examen—practices that help me slow down in God’s Word and notice Him in my ordinary days. But I don’t always have the time for these disciplines.
Lately, I’ve used the practice of Centering Prayer for just five minutes a day. To practice Centering Prayer, I sit in a quiet place with my eyes closed and still my mind. I focus on a word from my Bible reading that day or simply repeat the word peace. When my mind wanders (as it inevitably does), I simply bring my mind back to my focus word. Many people suggest doing this practice for twenty minutes or more, but I have found that even five minutes each day quiets the hamster wheel that is my mind and makes me more aware of God’s loving presence.
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2. One Small Prayer
I love making a daily to-do list because the process empties my racing thoughts onto paper and helps me remember all the minutiae of my life. But my daily to-do list is often as long as my grocery list for Christmas dinner. I wonder how I’ll ever have time to get it all done. Stress settles in my soul.
To combat this to-do-list anxiety, I’ve started praying over my catalog of tasks. Lord, please give me the right words for that writing project. Give me patience and wisdom as I tutor my ESL student. It only takes a minute or two, but it helps me remember that God willingly volunteers to give me the strength I need.
In the past few weeks, I added another dimension to this daily prayer. I now also pray: Lord, I give these tasks to You. I give You my time to use as You desire. This prayer helps me see unexpected interruptions not as roadblocks to my plans but as God’s agenda for my day. A small prayer over my to-list helps me trust God with my time.
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3. One Small Bible Study Method
I love diving into God’s Word. I enjoy reading large chunks of Scripture and studying books of the Bible, but sometimes I also love examining a small part of God’s Word through the practice of Verse Mapping.
When I sit down to do Verse Mapping, I choose one verse of Scripture. I study its context: What happens before and after this verse? I examine it in various versions of the Bible: How do different versions translate the original languages and give me a new perspective? I find related cross-references: What do other portions of Scripture have to say on this topic? Then I focus on keywords: What do these important words mean? Finally, using all I have learned, I write a paraphrase of the verse: How does this verse speak to my life?
Examining a small part of the Word helps me notice new truths that help my faith grow.
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4. One Small Tech Help
Recently, I decided I wanted to renew my practice of memorizing Scripture. I have never been very consistent in this habit, but now I’ve found an app that helps me stay focused.
This small tech help—the Remember Me app lets me choose the verse I want to memorize and the version of the Bible I want to use. The app provides several different games that make learning fun. After I feel confident in reciting the verse and mark it “Known,” the app will periodically put the verse back in the “Due” section so I review it and keep it in my mind.
I will never become a Bible memory champion, but using this app for a few minutes a day has helped me store God’s Word in my heart. When stress follows me through the day or sleep evades me in the night, I can call up verses that comfort me and remind me of God’s care.
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5. One Small Attitude Shift
In this world of experts who constantly tell me I need to upgrade my health with a specific exercise method, my financial life with a certain investment, or my beauty routine with a new brand of mascara, I often feel I simply don’t measure up. I continually feel I must improve myself.
But when I read Philippians 1:6, I notice that true improvement doesn’t depend on me: "I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ."
When I read this verse, I remember that God is the one who is doing the work of sanctification. The Holy Spirit transforms my heart. Jesus continually works His purpose in my soul. Yes, I do need to cooperate, but God does the work, not me.
The verse also reassures me that God will complete the work. I’ll admit, sometimes I’d like God to speed up the process of sanctification and transform me a little quicker. But God promises to finish what He started. Sometimes He works in a flash of eye-opening wonder, but often He achieves His purpose through gradually molding us over long periods of time. I remind myself that God is never in a hurry, but He is also never late. This small attitude shift helps me to stop constantly striving in my own strength and, instead, watch God do His work in my heart.
Big efforts can have big benefits. Sometimes God may call us to gigantic faith adventures.
But I’ve seen that we can also grow in trust through small practices. A few minutes of Centering Prayer reminds me of God’s presence each day. Praying over my to-do list helps me rely on God’s wisdom and strength. When I use the small Bible study method of Verse Mapping I notice new things in Scripture. Memorizing the Bible with the Remember Me app helps me store God’s Word in my heart. And realizing God faithfully works to transform my heart takes the pressure off me when the world insists I need to improve myself.
Small practices can connect us to God in big ways.
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Originally published Monday, 22 January 2024.
