1 Samuel 17:41-51
'The Philistine came on and drew near to David, with his shield-bearer in front of him. When the Philistine looked and saw David, he disdained him, for he was only a youth, ruddy and handsome in appearance. The Philistine said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. The Philistine said to David, “Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and to the wild animals of the field.”
But David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This very day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you down and cut off your head, and I will give the dead bodies of the Philistine army this very day to the birds of the air and to the wild animals of the earth, so that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel and that all this assembly may know that the Lord does not save by sword and spear, for the battle is the Lord ’s, and he will give you into our hand.”
When the Philistine drew nearer to meet David, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet the Philistine. David put his hand in his bag, took out a stone, slung it, and struck the Philistine on his forehead; the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell face down on the ground. So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone, striking down the Philistine and killing him; there was no sword in David’s hand. Then David ran and stood over the Philistine; he grasped his sword, drew it out of its sheath, and killed him; then he cut off his head with it. When the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled.
A stone. One of countless that would have littered the river bed where David gathered in preparation to face Goliath. One stone, non-descript, yet it was the turning point on that day. Goliath sees David’s size, youth, and lack of weaponry. Goliath is offended that the Israelites would send someone like David to face him. Goliath is judging by what can be seen (remember God’s instruction to Samuel in chapter 16?). That stone is representative of the faith that David has placed in the LORD.
Small seeds grow into great trees. Small keys can unlock large doors. Small steps of faith lead us down the path of righteousness. We often think we need to have all the answers before we begin to walk with Jesus, but the opposite is true. Jesus doesn’t wait for the best and the brightest to join him before he begins his work. He focuses on the faithful who hear his call and respond. Those small steps of faith lead us deeper into our relationship with Jesus.
The problem most of us encounter is that we want to know for sure that our small steps of faith will lead somewhere. We don’t like to fail publicly. We want to know the steps of the plan and what the outcome will be. The apostle Paul reminds us that our job is not to see the future, but to be faithful in the present. He puts it this way to the Corinthians:
'What you put in the ground doesn’t have the shape that it will have, but it’s a bare grain of wheat or some other seed. God gives it the sort of shape that he chooses, and he gives each of the seeds its own shape. '
1 Corinthians 15:37-38
As you reflect on your own life, consider: What 'small stone' of faith is God asking you to pick up today? It might be a kind word to a stranger, a decision to forgive, or the courage to stand up for what's right. Remember, in God's economy, no act of faith is too small to make a difference.