Sometime back I read an old newspaper article about the filling of the Lake of the Ozarks following the completion of Bagnell Dam. The reporter went down to one of the towns about to be covered with several feet of water. When he arrived, the water still just measured in the inches. “It’s not much,” someone commented, “but it’s here to stay.”

That remark really struck me. Wasn’t that the truth? I thought. By themselves, those few inches of water would hardly have been reason to get excited. But those people knew that the water that had arrived was not going to recede. Instead, it was just the beginning of what would be a permanent flood. Reading that account made me appreciate that often, huge changes begin small.    

That’s a truth I find encouraging. Sometimes it’s easy to get down when I consider how very far I am from being perfect, despite years of being a Christian. And sometimes it’s easy for me to get frustrated when I see others struggling to make progress. But instead of giving up in despair, I believe I should rejoice in what change I do see, even if it seems small. I should thank God that He is working in my life and the lives of others and put my hope and trust in Him to be not just the Author but also the Finisher of our salvation.

“In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy … being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 1:4,6 NIV