Nothing God does is ever small

​A yellow post-it note lingered in the small trash can I had just dumped. Full of excitement, I reached down and grabbed it. The message it gave couldn’t have been more relevant: “Nothing God does is ever small.”

You see, I’d been struggling with disappointment. My ministry wasn’t reaching my expectations. I desired a bigger platform. More likes. More interaction. More opportunities. And to succeed, I knew I had to change something. So I did.

Three weeks ago, I changed the name of my ministry from Cross Words Ministries to Isaiah Pauley Ministries.

The day I found this reminder, I was borderline depressed over the lack of hype and interaction my ministry was receiving. It’s not that I wanted to make it about myself. I just wanted to see it grow.
That’s why I needed this reminder. Because I often fail to realize just how awesome God is in my life and ministry. In the eyes of the world, my ministry is small and insignificant. But in the eyes of God, it’s irreplaceable. Why? Nothing God does is ever small.

The same is true in your life.

Think about John the Baptist. He was in prison. His ministry expectations were a little shaky. And—well, I’ll let you read the story for yourself.

“When Jesus had finished giving these instructions to his twelve disciples, he went out to teach and preach in towns throughout the region. John the Baptist, who was in prison, heard about all the things the Messiah was doing. So he sent his disciples to ask Jesus, ‘Are you the Messiah we’ve been expecting, or should we keep looking for someone else?’” (Matthew 11:1-3 NLT).

Here was a man who gave everything for the cause of Christ. His message was, “‘Repent of your sins and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near’” (Matthew 3:2 NLT). He led people to Jesus and baptized many. He even baptized Jesus! Eventually, he was in prison while Jesus’ ministry was thriving.

Jesus told John’s disciples, “‘Go back to John and tell him what you have heard and seen—the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, and the Good News is being preached to the poor. And tell him, “God blesses those who do not turn away because of me”’” (Matthew 11:4-6 NLT).

Paul found himself in a similar situation. While constructing the book of Philippians, he was in a Roman prison for his faith. He wrote, “And because of my imprisonment, most of the believers here have gained confidence and boldly speak God’s message without fear. It’s true that some are preaching out of jealousy and rivalry. But others preach about Christ with pure motives. They preach because they love me, for they know I have been appointed to defend the Good News. Those others do not have pure motives as they preach about Christ. They preach with selfish ambition, not sincerely, intending to make my chains more painful to me. But that doesn’t matter. Whether their motives are false or genuine, the message about Christ is being preached either way, so I rejoice…” (Philippians 1:14-18 NLT).

Both of these men learned a valuable lesson through their imprisonments.

The ministry isn’t Jesus. Jesus is the ministry. And Jesus was being preached. People were being healed. Chains were falling down. Sure, it may not have been Paul and John doing the work they expected to be doing. But it was the Church working together for the cause of Christ.

Today, I want to encourage you in your own, unique ministry to God. It isn’t small. It isn’t insignificant.

Maybe you find yourself at a standstill. Maybe you feel locked behind bars of indecision and uncertainty. But take heart in Jesus. Be thankful He’s being preached. Because we’re all in this together. Ideally, ministry is 7.4 billion times bigger than you. It’s all about Jesus. Just Jesus.
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Nothing God does is ever small.