Small Beginnings
Minister Sondria McWilliams
May 2024
Do not despise these small beginnings, for the LORD rejoices to see the work begin. Zechariah 4:10(a) NLT
This is the scripture the Lord gave to me in my forties when I decided that not being able to save money at my age was not okay. Despite having financial success in giving, being debt free and paying cash for traveling and other expenses, when it came to saving, I was clueless.
The Lord spoke to me that saving money (the Bible actually uses the word prudent) was a good desire and that He would teach me. I was thrilled. I became so excited that I immediately thought I would save large increments at a time. He shared with me that if I could not save twenty dollars then how would I be able to save five-hundred dollars? Then, He gave me the scripture above. How humbling this truth was to my heart. Anytime we desire to make changes in our lives we swing for the fences. Our flesh wants to see the biggest changes in the shortest period of time. This is why we start something and fail or don’t start at all. Our flesh wants to see progress immediately and wants it to be visible to ourselves and others. This is pride, our natural default.
When you study this verse (in Sondria theology) it’s saying start small! It’s the best thing ever and if the Lord is excited about starting small then you should be too.
This is truly the highest form of thinking because embracing starting small is a principle that will bring you victory in every area of your life. I have experienced this in weight loss, decorating my home and in starting my ministry. Everything I needed to understand about saving money was mine, so much so, that when I saved my first thousand dollars, the Lord told me to sow it into someone else’s ministry. I was able to do so in faith because I knew that I could save it again.