Listen Now
Imagine walking up a flight of stairs, but one of the steps in front of you is missing.
Not too hard to walk over that one…right?
Now imagine three or four steps missing in a row. And what you want is upstairs!
It seems silly and maybe even a little impossible to try and leap over the missing steps.
During a walk through the park last month, I became overwhelmed by the goals I wanted to meet. The tasks looked gigantic and I felt so puny.
As I prayed, God showed me that people in the Bible didn’t achieve anything by taking giant leaps. They took small steps that built faith and endurance, and they gradually gained the knowledge they needed for bigger plans.
Do you know the account in the Bible about Noah and the Ark? It’s in Genesis. What if Noah had skipped the part about making sure there were no gaps between the wood where water could come in while building the ark? The story might have ended in tragedy.
God reminded me on my park walk that I wasn’t by myself. Philippians 4:13 came to mind: “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Noah knew God was with him. How else could he have built an ark?
I realized I couldn’t reach my goals if I skipped steps. But, what is that first step?
Hmmm. . . surely Noah drew up a blueprint of his building plans.
A couple of years ago, I took an online art journaling class that assigned students to draw a map of their goals.
During that time, I had a toddler. I was working on writing a novel while I was trying to carve out time for creating art.
So, being the free-spirited creative type that I am, I made a goal-map of me diving in the ocean. My goals were written in air bubbles. I spelled out my novel name in the picture of the coral and drew a treasure chest on the ocean floor filled with art supplies. Now as I look over the map of my goals, I see my accomplished goals and how small each one was to get to the ocean bottom.
Maybe Noah wasn’t an artist. You certainly don’t have to be VanGogh or Rembrandt to have fun creating your own goal-map. Borrow crayons and paper from your kids, and get them involved. They, too, may want to make maps of their own goals.
Then let everyone hang the maps of goals on the wall or the refrigerator. Put star stickers to mark each accomplished step.
Let God guide your steps. The Bible says in Proverbs 16:19 that a man’s heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps. Don’t get stuck on how fast you want to reach your goal or how far you have to go. Staying power is the key here. Focus on the little steps and do each one to the best of your ability.
Noah’s head could’ve exploded if he knew how long the ark was going to take to build. Rest assured that Noah had off days too. His family may have had to remind him at times to get his rear in gear when he was sidetracked or ran out of steam.
Be accountable to your family. Trust me, your kids will let you know when you’re slacking or distracted. But they will encourage you in each step, too.
As you make New Year resolutions, remember the story of Noah and the Ark. Set your goals; map out small steps to attain them. Trust God to help you. And if you should get overwhelmed, remember that at least you’re not building an ark!
