Just a little sleep, just a little slumber, just a little nap. – Proverbs 24:33
Big doors turn on small hinges, mighty ships are steered by simple rudders…and devastating outcomes emerge from “insignificant” expressions of continual neglect or attention.
In Proverbs 24, the Word tells the short tragic story of a vineyard owned by a slothful man who was “void of understanding”.
It takes about 2 years for a freshly sown vineyard to start producing any grapes, and another 4 years for it to deliver your first bottle of wine. And if you’re looking to make a living from the marketing and selling of the wine you produce from your grapes, you’re looking at about 11 to 13 years before your vineyard produces a positive net income.
11 to 13 years.
Over a decade of care, nurture, attention, toil, sacrifice, being anchored to a specific geographical location before you start to see a positive return.
On a 10+ year canvas, a nap here and there doesn’t seem to be of any consequence. But what the slothful man didn’t understand is the wisdom of Luke 16:10.
He that is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much: and he that is unrighteous in a very little is unrighteous also in much.
In other words, a man who will faithfully tend, nurture and protect a field before its value is revealed is a man you can trust to faithfully tend, nurture and protect the same field once the harvest is manifest.
That’s the Judges 7:5 principle in action.
God always uses the “little” to determine the much. That’s just His way.
So don’t despise the day of small beginnings. It might feel as if you’re making as much progress as the drip, drip, drip of leaking tap…not as impressive as the power of a full-force tidal wave.
But remember that in the Kingdom, “a little” goes a long way to unlocking the door of the “much”.