One Step At A Time
We live in an instant world. Just about everything is provided for us in an instant. Popcorn, fast-food, pudding, grits, coffee, and a whole host of other things. We have conditioned ourselves to expect things to be provided almost the exact instant we want something. The problem we face is the fact that other people are not as concerned about getting what we want when we want it. We want an answer, and we want it now. We want a discount and we want it now. We want a hamburger and we want it now.
Many of the tasks we get involved with are sometimes overwhelming. Some things just do not appear instantly when we want them. When our boss wants something right now that is going to take some time, we tell him/her to take a chill pill. (Well we would if we thought we could get away with it). We learn that some tasks cannot happen instantly even though we expect instant results in just about every other endeavor in life.
Whenever we are given certain tasks, we look at things that need to get done and wonder just how it is going to be accomplished. I am sure you heard the one about the malnourished peasant that was presented an elephant to eat. When asked how he could eat the elephant, he replied "one bite at a time". Well, that is how we are going to accomplish the great tasks before us. One step at a time! Now we may have to sit down and compile a list of priorities or needs or materials to do this task. But like the peasant, all we can do is one step at a time.
There is a lot of frustration when others expect us to come through on such large tasks, and we get upset when they begin to show displeasure at our failure to produce the results instantly.
Now to make the spiritual application. When one becomes a Christian, there is a lot that needs to be learned and a life of changes that need to take place. New Christians can be overwhelmed by everything that they are expected to learn. Well, this is no different. We must do this one step at a time. After all, we have the rest of our life to figure it out. We have the advantage of a loving God who sympathizes with us. If we are trying; God knows it.
So we may not know as much as others. They did not learn this stuff overnight. They learned it over time.
What we have to be careful about is some might think the task of learning is too great, and will not attempt to learn or study. We need to encourage every Christian to grown in grace and knowledge, now while they still can. There might come a time in which they cannot learn anything, or cannot understand the meaning of what they are taught.
Those people have an excuse, but those not in that condition have no excuse. Just like Romans 1:20 tells us that people have no excuse to recognize God when God has given them plenty of evidence of His existence.
Take the time to learn something new every day. There is much to learn. In fact there is so much that we will never learn it all. But God does not expect us to know it all. God expects us to try to learn as much as we can one step at a time.
By Carey Scott

Return to the General Articles page

Home / Bible studies / Bible Survey / Special Studies / General Articles / Non-Bible Articles / Sermons / Sermon Outlines / Links / Questions and Answers / What Saith The Scriptures /Daily Devotional / Correspondence Courses / What is the Church of Christ / Book: Christian Growth / Website Policy / E-mail / About Me /