Zechariah 4:10 NLT
“Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin”
Two steps forward, then one step back.
This is the frustrating and tiring pattern of pursuing almost anything that is worth doing. The people I know who have had covid-19 (who thankfully recovered!) express their recovery this way. “Just when I was starting to feel better, I’d have a bad day and feel miserable again.” From going back to school to raising children to pursuing career advancement or change, working toward achieving goals is rarely a brisk walk in a straight line.
When I was little, we used to play a game called, “Red Light, Green Light”. Did you play that one? One person acted as the traffic light. Everyone else tried to be the first to reach the traffic light. When the traffic light shouted, “Green light!” and turned around, everyone else could move as quickly as they wanted to toward the traffic light. The catch was that at any moment the traffic light could quickly turn around and shout, “Red light!” Then you had to freeze immediately. Anyone that the traffic light saw moving had to go back to the starting line. We quickly learned that the faster you tried to move toward the goal, the more likely you were to make a mistake that forced you to start over. Moving too slowly, however, typically meant that someone else would get there first.
Typical to our personalities, I was most likely to lose this game because I moved too slowly, afraid to make a mistake. My brother, on the other hand, went full-speed ahead, often had to start over, and on many occasions gave up in frustration.
Red Light, Green Light is not a bad analogy for life. Fear of failure can keep us from really living the life we’re called to, while pushing for too much, too soon can leave us feeling defeated. There’s a lot that could be explored about this but for today let’s focus on getting started.
Yesterday, I challenged you to be intentional about choosing your direction as the lockdowns ease, rather than letting the “new normal” happen to you. Maybe you’ve got some ambitious goals running through your head, or a vague idea about a new direction but you’re not really sure where it should end up. Maybe the covid-19 restrictions that are still in place will make it difficult to do all the things you hope to do right away, or there are still too many questions about what the future holds. I get it. The circumstances are still very complex and confusing.
But the longer you delay, the more likely you are to get swept up in a current you didn’t choose that leads you in a different direction. Or the same direction as always, but not the one you were hoping for. Starting small is still a start. Sometimes starting small is the only way to start. This verse from Zechariah challenges us not to despise small beginnings, and to remember that when we are following where God leads, he rejoices to see the work begin.
Just a few verses earlier, Zechariah 4:6 reminds us how these God-sized goals are to be accomplished:
“It is not by force nor by strength, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.”
You can’t force it or rush it, but neither can you be afraid to even start. Learn to appreciate the small beginnings, even as you learn to listen to the Spirit who will take you there in just the right time.
Two steps forward, one step back is still progress in the right direction. This way of making it through life is less like a march and more like a dance. A march might be the most efficient way of getting where you’re going, but there’s far more beauty in a dance. Stop and listen for the music of the Spirit, trust its rhythm, and learn to tune out the snare drum cadence in your head that tells you you should be marching. The twists and turns are all a part of the choreography that is making your journey into a work of art.
Moment of Beauty
Two steps forward, one step back is like a waltz. Watch this beautifully choreographed waltz as you reflect on gracefully accepting life as a dance rather than a march.
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