One Star Fish at a time

One day, a man observed a boy throwing starfish back into the sea.  He asked him what he was doing.  He replied that he was throwing them back into the sea, because if they were to stay on the beach they would die.  The man replied, “But there are hundreds of starfish on the beach. What will your effort achieve?”  “It will make a difference for this one,” he replied as he threw another one back.

            The man observing what the boy was doing thought it was a waste of time.  What could he achieve?   The boy might not be able to return all of the starfish back into to the sea, but he was thinking about the value of each starfish that he was able to return to the sea.  No matter how little value his effort might appear to others, for the starfish that were returned to the sea there was value. 

            Many of us might be tempted to think like the man observing what was happening on the beach that day.  What is the point of what I do? What can I personally achieve?  This way of thinking is very natural. We often make judgements on how efficient and productive an activity is. But this fails to see the bigger picture of what God might have in mind for us, and to consider the things that He wants us to be doing. The Lord judges the value of any work on its source– is it what we want to do or is it what the Lord wants from us? The Lord is looking at the motives for our actions and not on how much is achieved.

Mark 14 tells the story of Mary anointing the head of the Lord Jesus. Mary was criticised for her actions. To most of the disciples it seemed like a dreadful waste. But notice how the Lord responds to their criticism: “Leave her alone… She has done a beautiful thing to me… She did what she could” (14:6, 8).  Jesus praised her for what she did. Her fragrant ointment was a precious possession, and she was willing to sacrifice it for Jesus. Her love is expressed in the sacrifice and Jesus can see that in her actions.

            If we truly love the Lord, then we will not be concerned about whether the work He gives us is large or small, for it is our heart that the Lord is looking at. But the fact of the matter is that we are often more concerned about what others will think or see. We are seeking the praise of men rather than the Lord. We may feel that what we do doesn’t really seem to accomplish much, so we feel that it is a waste of time.

However, as we think about the boy throwing one starfish at a time, his small effort was vital to those that were returned to the sea.  So too, we should not judge what we do by the standards of what is visible to others.  What God is looking for is not what looks good, but a faithful attitude that does what God gives us to do so that He is glorified.  That is when we will be valuable servants of the Lord.

            Special events may have their place in introducing people to the Lord, but more often than not, it is friendship,  being available for someone, helping them in their times of difficulty that will have the bigger impact for them in seeing what the love of God looks like in daily life.  This will be more meaningful and attractive to a person who has been shown friendship.

            We don’t know how our small effort is influencing others.  It may just be a smile to someone in the street, or stopping to give someone a few moments of our time.  Perhaps not very significant in the great scheme of things, but it might bless that one person more than we can imagine.  There are so many people to be reached in the world with the good news that Jesus loves us, how can my little effort make any difference.  But we need to remember that we are not here to reach millions, but to reach one person at a time.  Be encouraged and let God use you to be a blessing to someone today, and don’t worry about what others might think.