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Devotional for May 5, 2020

No Job Too Big Or Small

"Arise, Lord! Lift up your hand, O God. Do not forget the helpless." (Psalm 10:12 NIV)

Yesterday, in anticipation of consistent good weather coming up soon, I spent much of the evening, as I had done a couple days prior, clearing out flowerbeds of weeds. It turned into a larger job than I anticipated, because the past couple of years I have had a problem with thistles, which tend to grow and spread rather rapidly. Thistles also require being dug up rather than simply pulled, since they develop deep roots quickly. Removing them can thus always turn into a big job rather quickly. Additionally, the bucket I had to haul weeds away quickly proved inadequate to the task, as it was too small to take away such large loads at a time. Fortunately, my neighbor across the street had a garden cart, which made hauling away the weeds a lot easier. This is doubtless going to be an ongoing project throughout the Spring and Summer, as I am able to plant herbs and more flowers, but weeds still arise from time to time. It will still be a challenging job.

Frequently, we run into similar situations in life: things arise that prove to be a much larger task than anticipated, and we become overwhelmed. We especially become overwhelmed when the resources we have prove inadequate to being able to handle what we are given. We still have to deal with whatever it is we have to face, but it is a challenge for us to do so, even impossible. At that point, it is easy for us to give up in despair.

In such situations as these, there is an alternative to giving up: since God is almighty and all-powerful, there is nothing too large for Him to handle. He created everything, and still remains involved in everything, so He still has power over everything. There is nothing too impossible for Him to take care of or resolve, so He never gives up in despair. He does not give up in hopelessness, because He never stops until anything is resolved. He is the source of all hope as a result, because He does not give up in hopelessness.

Also, on the other hand, there are things that arise in life which we think might be too insignificant for God to handle. Things happen that we, or others, might consider trivial and unimportant. In those cases, we also have the promise that nothing is too small for God to want to take care of. Everything is important to God, no matter how small, or large, it is. He does not dismiss us or our problems as being too unimportant or small to handle. We all, no matter who we are, are important to Him, and every problem we have is important to Him. Neither does He give up in despair and hopelessness. He is always there for us, loves us, and cares for us, and everything we are and have is important to Him.

Dear God, thank you that I am important to you, and nothing I have is too large or small for you to handle. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

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