Living out the Word in the little things

Man’s calling is to love God. The Bible compares the love between God and humankind to the love between a husband and his wife (Hos 2:4–22; Eph 5:21–33).  But in a loving relationship, it is not enough simply to be married. One must also demonstrate that love within the marriage. It is everyday life that counts: loving one’s partner faithfully in the big things and, above all, in the little things. There are times when we commit ourselves to loving God; we make resolutions. Sometimes we may even take vows to Him, truly deciding to love Him, as do those consecrated to religious or priestly life, or full members of a religious order. This step is necessary. But contrary to what some people think, it is not an end in itself; it is a beginning, a door opening onto the path of total love for God. To live the rest of our lives well and to grow, we must love God in the little things.

We have far more opportunities to love God in the little things than in the great ones. Great opportunities to love God include, for example, giving up everything by distributing one’s possessions to the poor in order to follow Christ, offering profound forgiveness to a bitter enemy, or dying a martyr’s death, and so on. Such opportunities to love God in great things may not come our way very often.  The opportunity for a bloody martyrdom may never be offered to us. Our lives are made up mostly of small things. So many opportunities are given to us in a single day, and throughout our lives, to show our love for God, and we often miss them through carelessness. We do not often love God in the little things because they seem insignificant and worthless to us; yet Jesus tells us: ‘Whoever is faithful in a very small matter is also faithful in a great one’ (Luke 16:10). If I love Jesus in the little things, even when the big ones come along, I will be quicker to love him. The mustard plant, which has a tiny seed, when sown, grows into one of the largest trees (Mt 13:31–32).  When I love God in a small thing, it may seem insignificant, but the impact of that action is beyond imagination.  Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus said: ‘By picking up a pin for Jesus, I can save a soul’. Moreover, seeking to love God in the little things is humility. Yet whoever humbles themselves will be exalted.

It is a lack of attention to small things that leads people to neglect venial sins. Many Christians are aware of the impact of mortal sin and make an effort to avoid it. Yet many still overlook venial sin. For whoever is unfaithful in small matters will be unfaithful in greater ones. Venial sin weakens love and paves the way for mortal sin. Anyone who is careful to love God in the little things will avoid offending Him even through venial sin. They will grow very quickly in their communion with God. You often recognise someone’s love when they are meticulous and attentive to you in the little things. Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus is a vivid example in this regard. She said she was not capable of great things and, for that reason, she made herself small so that she might be carried by God.

Examples of these small opportunities to show love might include: a warm greeting, a smile, a loving glance, a tiny act of love, avoiding a bad thought, keeping the Word of God in one’s heart, and so on. Personally, I am very drawn to this spirituality. I am not capable of doing great things for God, and I tell myself that He has given me the opportunity to love Him, provided that I manage to seize the small, sometimes insignificant, opportunities to show Him my love and please Him. The tool that helps us practise this spirituality within the Movement of the Incarnation is the prayer card, where we find little exercises in love for Jesus.  A spiritually proud person will find it very difficult to use the prayer card, which consists mainly of small exercises designed to please Jesus: for example, ‘read a chapter of the Bible today’, whereas perhaps some people study the Bible and are in the habit of reading it. So why not add a chapter to their usual reading today? The exercise for the day might also ask us to smile a great deal to show God’s joy, even when we would rather be caring for the dying who are flooding the streets. There will come a time when God will ask some people to do this for him. But let us not forget that a smile offered out of love may come at a high price yet bear much fruit.

The Virgin Mary called herself the humble handmaid of the Lord. She did not do anything extraordinary. Her life was simple and ordinary, and yet she is our model of holiness... Let us love Jesus especially in the little things. Let us all practise the exercises from this month’s ‘Living the Word’ sheet.

Henri Bayemi