Start Small 2023 Series

Starting Small

We try to do so many things and be better in so many areas that, in the end, we accomplish nothing. We are just back at square 1. And we all thought we would learn through the pandemic. And we are not even out of it, and we like even crazier than before. We try to balance so many things because we in the world currently know that to be good successful humans, we have to have a great job, a great marriage, an excellent school for kids, great finances, great cars, and excellent health. To name a few, how do we keep on doing that?

The new year excites new hope and inspires determination to change the year ahead, typically through major overhauls of diets, spending, and other habits. I want you all, including me, to do something different this year. I do not want you to make a list. So can I ask you to do the following - Take your list and shred it to pieces.

1

We need to create a foundation.

Explanation

I want to look primarily at the Zeceraiah. For those who do not know where that is, maybe you should add reading the Bible to your list in a year. Let me ask you this: Sometimes, you may have been tempted to quit. Zechariah found a city full of people who felt like this. So he spoke words of encouragement and motivation to them, and they picked up the pieces and kept going. Zechariah's words can do the same for us today.

God's people had been in captivity in Babylon for 70 years. But when Cyrus came to power, he permitted people to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple. Many chose to stay, but those who returned set about their task with great enthusiasm. They soon encountered many obstacles, however, and became discouraged. And if I look at this story and also our life.

We read this Zechariah 4:7 (HCSB)7 'What are you, great mountain? Before Zerubbabel, you will become a plain. And he will bring out the capstone accompanied by shouts of: Grace, grace to it!'"

A cornerstone was the principal stone, usually placed at the corner of an edifice, to guide the workers' course. The Cornerstone was usually one of the largest, most solid, and most carefully constructed structures. The Bible describes Jesus as the Cornerstone that His church would be built. He is foundational. Once the Cornerstone was set, it became the basis for determining every measurement in the remaining construction; everything was aligned. As the Cornerstone of the church's building, Jesus is our standard of measure and alignment.

The book of Isaiah has many references to the Messiah to come. In several places, the Messiah is referred to as "the cornerstone," such as in this prophecy: "So this is what the Sovereign Lord says: 'See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation; the One who trusts will never be dismayed. I will make justice the measuring line and righteousness the plumb line" (Isaiah 28:16–17). In context, God speaks to the scoffers and boasters of Judah, and He promises to send the Cornerstone—His precious Son—who will provide a firm foundation for their lives if they would but trust in Him.

But what we did as humans we replace that Cornerstone with something else. We replaced it with our jobs, our careers. We made our cornerstones our wives and husbands. (Speak into God first, then your marriage)

We do not need to do anything in our strength because we see in both the new and old Testaments that Jesus is the Cornerstone. Paul wanted the church in Ephesians to know Jesus better. Paul wants us today also to e know Christ better: "Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief Cornerstone. The whole building is joined together in him and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord" (Ephesians 2:19– 21).

Peter says that Jesus, as our Cornerstone, is "chosen by God and precious to him" (1 Peter 2:4 and Verse 6). The Cornerstone is also reliable, and "the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame" (verse 6).

Illustration

The most famous poor foundation in the world is the Leaning Tower of Pisa in Italy. The tower began to sink after construction progressed to the third floor in 1178. Scientists travel yearly to measure the building's slow descent. They report that the 179-foot tower moves about one-twentieth of an inch a year. The tower threatens to fall onto the nearby ristorante, where scientists now gather to discuss their findings. Quite significantly, the word "Pisa" means "marshy land," which explains why the tower began to lean even before it was completed. Also--its foundation is only 10 feet deep!