Look for little things

Jesus, help me notice little things, like you do! Amen.

"Even a sparrow can't die without God knowing about it," Jesus taught. "And you're worth more than a lot of sparrows! Every hair on your head matters to God. So let others know that you believe in God; then, I will be with you."

Kids notice little things. When the grownups are charging ahead, trying to hurry you to baseball practice on time, you're probably walking s-l-o-w-l-y toward the car, watching ants crawl out of a crack in the sidewalk or making sure you jump on every rock next to your driveway.

Jesus probably wouldn't mind that. In this week's Gospel (Matthew 10:26-33), He told us that God always notices little things -- for instance, sparrows!

A sparrow is a tiny bird, and there are a lot of sparrows in the world. In fact, when you're walking to the car, you might see a bunch in just one tree! Even though there are thousands of sparrows, Jesus said that God notices when even one gets old and dies.

That means God notices the tiniest of tiny things. With His story, Jesus was really saying that God cares about everything, even small things about you. God cares if you're lonely, if you passed your swimming test, if you're watching ants crawl or if you're wishing you had a dog.

Everything you care about is important to God.

If you're taking your time when grownups are trying to rush you, you might want to hurry up a little. On the other hand, it's also important for the grownups to slow down. If they don't, they might miss little things -- like ants or how high you've learned to jump.

But, one thing is for sure: God never misses a thing!