Little by Little

Walking with Purpose Series — Discovering God’s purposes and learning to walk in step with Him.

Written by Chantelle Kate

Over the years, I have come to see that it is rarely the dramatic moments that shape our walk with God the most. They often feel big and can act as catalysts for something new. But in themselves they burn bright and then fade. A shooting star that bursts across the night sky only to fall back into the vast cosmos.

The encounters with God, the pivotal decisions, and the new revelations are important, because they often place us at crossroads that reveal something of God’s purposes for us, but they do not sustain us in them. Growth does not happen at the crossroads. It’s in the staying on the path, and choosing to walk it again the next day, and the next. It’s the small things that build momentum which leads to consistency. Little by little, day by day.

As we continue this journey of discovering God’s purposes and learning to walk in step with Him, we must remember that purpose is not usually lost or made in one dramatic decision. It is strengthened, or eroded, in the little things. The tiny nudges that God gives us to adjust our thinking, the small compromises we make when we shrug those nudges off, or the steady gains when we are malleable in His hands. These are the things that, over time, determine the shape of our lives.

As we have been delving into this series, we have seen that when God speaks a word over us, He reveals purpose for our lives. The invitation that follows is often simple, and it comes with a grace to walk it out. But it’s our choice to yield to His leading, or go back to our way of doing things.

So, how can we position ourselves to continue to walk with purpose?

Faithful in the Small

The Lord told Israel that He would drive out their enemies “little by little.”

The LORD your God will clear away these nations before you little by little. You may not make an end of them at once, lest the wild beasts grow too numerous for you (Deuteronomy 7:22).

Not all at once in a single sweeping moment, but gradually, as they were able to take possession of the land and rule it, establishing order and governance.

God grows us the same way. He shapes our character, deepens our intimacy, and expands our capacity little by little. If everything changed overnight, we would not be able to bear it or sustain it.

The small adjustments we allow the Lord to make are not insignificant. They are preparation for what we will walk into. It’s how we learn to steward what He is entrusting to us.

For example, if the Lord is calling us to devote more time in the Word, it’s the daily obedience that becomes a habit, and then a craving as we run to it each day. It’s the discipline God is building in our lives that yields enormous results. It will feed our spirit, renew our mind, and ground us in our relationship with Jesus.

The Word itself reminds us:

One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much (Luke 16:10).

We have bad days. We fail in moments. But it’s the patterns we build over time that matter.

Let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up (Galatians 6:9).

We do not earn our inheritance. It has already been secured for us in Christ. But we need to walk into it little by little and possess it. As we mature into it, we grow in our capacity to carry it.

Following the Prompting of the Holy Spirit

Sometimes we imagine that walking in God’s purposes requires large, heroic acts of faith. But more often, it looks like daily responsiveness to the leadings of His precious Holy Spirit. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God (Romans 8:14).

I have noticed in my own life that when I ignore the small promptings of the Holy Spirit, intimacy begins to dull. And when I respond, when I submit to the adjustment, peace floods my spirit and joy becomes my friend. I walk closely with Jesus again.

When I took an Uber a few months ago, my driver spoke to me in a whisper. She then apologized, saying she has a problem with her voice and cannot speak above a whisper. I asked if this was temporary like pharyngitis or something she lived with long term. She said it had been years and there was no hope for change. I felt a righteous anger rise up in me because she shouldn’t have to live this way. And in that moment I felt the Holy Spirit nudge me, “Pray for her.”

My next thought was, well, that’s not going to work, since she’s taking me to Urgent Care for chest pains. What kind of witness am I for the healing power of God? I had a choice. There was a brief internal wrestle. It felt inconvenient and slightly absurd, but I knew God was directing me. So I obeyed. I asked if she would mind if I prayed for her, and she was very willing. As I stretched my hand over the back of the seat and laid it on her shoulder, I started to pray, and the palpable presence and peace of God descended.

I know she encountered the presence of God in that moment, and I continued to pray for her in the days that followed. I may not ever know what came of that, but I scattered the seed the Lord put in my hand. Next time I want to respond to Him again, so that He continues to put opportunities in my path, where I can give Him glory as I walk into all He has purposed for me.

It required a yielding to do that.

God is the One who forms us. He is the One who works in us to will and to act according to His good pleasure (Philippians 2:13).

But we must allow the adjustment. God doesn’t force us into maturity or out of nowhere increase the anointing we carry. We grow into these things. Even when they come suddenly, it’s because there’s a path of surrender we’ve been walking in.

Catch the Little Foxes

Song of Songs is one of my favorite books. Reading it in the Passion Translation opened my eyes to the intimacy of my relationship with Jesus, and the ebbs and flows of following Him.

The Bridegroom says to the Bride, “Arise, my love, my beautiful one, and come away, for behold, the winter is past…” He wants to take her away with Him into a place of intimacy.

Then He says,

“Catch the little foxes for us, the little foxes that spoil the vineyards, for our vineyards are in blossom” (Song of Songs 2:15).

He knows the little foxes may seem like minor nuisances, but if ignored, they will eat the fruit and spoil the vineyard, so He tells her to catch them. He first made her aware of them and then said, Let’s deal with this.

It’s important that we lean on the prompting of the Holy Spirit here, otherwise we can easily fall into self-righteousness and legalism. When the Lord puts His finger on something, that is the time to address it. As He leads, He enables. Self-righteousness is heavy, a scratchy overcoat that weighs us down. It’s restrictive and subtly trains us to measure others instead of ourselves. Christ’s righteousness is the robe of righteousness, a light, perfect fit.

So often we mark ourselves successful because we are not failing in big ways, and we overlook the little things that, if left unattended, can eventually obliterate the fruit. I have done this in my own life. Little things I thought were not a big deal, left unchecked, became unmanageable.

We are told to lay aside every weight and the sin that so easily entangles us (Hebrews 12:1), and to guard our hearts, for everything flows from it (Proverbs 4:23).

Purpose is not usually derailed in one catastrophic moment, although leaving things unchecked can ultimately lead to one. It is weakened in the procrastination of obedience or the shrugging off of the nudges of the Holy Spirit. The places where we stop listening are the places where intimacy is eroded, and without intimacy with the Lord, the world can begin to look deceptively tasteful again.

These small, Spirit-led changes may not look impressive to anyone else. But they shape our intimacy with Jesus, and as we lay aside the weights and the sin that entangles us, we can walk forward with freedom and in time find ourselves running into the purposes of God.

How Is He Leading?

So perhaps the question is not, “What is the grand thing I must do for God?” Maybe it is just putting our hand in His and letting Him lead. Maybe it’s being malleable as He shapes us and forms us into the image of Christ. We can’t do it. Many have tried. All have failed. But He can.

So without tripping into legalism or hyper-vigilance, can we ask the Lord to make us aware of His leading?

Is there a discipline He is forming in our lives where He’s teaching us consistency?
Is there an area He’s prodding and saying, “Let’s deal with this little fox?”
Is He wanting to make us more responsive to His leading?

I encourage you to turn your face toward Him, slip your hand into His, and ask Him to lead you.

As we walk with Him, let us not despise the little things. They are often the hinges on which great doors swing.

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Next time, we will continue with the Walking with Purpose Series, discovering God’s purposes and learning to walk in step with Him.