“If you can’t feed a hundred people, then just feed one,” said the late Mother Teresa.
I think Mother Teresa’s statement has something to do with this old saying: “He can’t see the forest for [seeing] the trees.” This reverse version of that statement may be more in tune with Mother Teresa’s advice: “He can’t see the trees for [seeing] the forest.”
When someone desires to feed many people but lacks means or ability to achieve that goal, he may decide to give up and feed no one. His crushed, perhaps-unrealistic vision may cause him to lose faith.
The Scriptures advise us: “Despise not the day of small things.” Jesus observed that he who is faithful over a few things will be made ruler over many.
In our pop-top, drive-thru world, we covet instant gratification. When someone inspires us to reach out to people, we may think in touch-the-whole-world terms. We think big – maybe too big (at the beginning). “The longest journey begins with a single step,” someone said.
My wife often notices my self-defeating ways of thinking. After I sometimes rehearse all the things I think I need to get done, she will say, “But what are you meant to do today?”
As Mother Teresa said, “If you can’t feed a hundred people, then just feed one.”
I think Mother Teresa’s statement has something to do with this old saying: “He can’t see the forest for [seeing] the trees.” This reverse version of that statement may be more in tune with Mother Teresa’s advice: “He can’t see the trees for [seeing] the forest.”
When someone desires to feed many people but lacks means or ability to achieve that goal, he may decide to give up and feed no one. His crushed, perhaps-unrealistic vision may cause him to lose faith.
The Scriptures advise us: “Despise not the day of small things.” Jesus observed that he who is faithful over a few things will be made ruler over many.
In our pop-top, drive-thru world, we covet instant gratification. When someone inspires us to reach out to people, we may think in touch-the-whole-world terms. We think big – maybe too big (at the beginning). “The longest journey begins with a single step,” someone said.
My wife often notices my self-defeating ways of thinking. After I sometimes rehearse all the things I think I need to get done, she will say, “But what are you meant to do today?”
As Mother Teresa said, “If you can’t feed a hundred people, then just feed one.”
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