Occasionally I surprise my wife and warm the cockles of her heart with the announcement, "I think I'll work in the garden today." Now, there are several reasons why this warms her heart and that motivates me to do the job; first, the garden does need attention; second, I don't want to be nagged; third, my wife is old-fashioned enough to believe that men should work in the yard and women should make cookies; fourth, I like cookies. However, there are a number of factors beyond my control that mitigate my resolve: some emergency with a higher priority that needs attention, the weather may not be conducive to outside work, it may be too hot or too cold, it may be too wet or too dry. Perhaps my physical condition is not up to par, a sore back, or sore muscles, or sore joints. Perhaps I don't have the right tools, a hoe, or rake, or pickax.
There are any number of reasons to discourage my good intentions, but usually these are overcome by the prospects of a warm-hearted spouse. One can endure a certain amount of discomfort for a worthy goal, but there is one pain that always brings the most conscientious labor to a stop; that problem is a stone in the shoe. It doesn't have to be a large stone, just a tiny little pebble will stop the most hardy workman; unless of course, he happens to be a Solomon Island native who is used to going barefoot and has really tough callouses. But most of us are tenderfoots, and we are forced to stop and remove the offending pebble.
So it is with our Christian experience; it is not the big temptations and trials that cause us to stumble, but it is the little pebbles that sneak in to cause us discomfort and discouragement. It is not the elephants that destroy the vineyard, but we are told it is the little foxes (Song of Sol., 2:15). When one is walking in the desert one can expect to endure heat and thirst and keep going, but sand in the shoes can't be tolerated for long. We can become spiritually discouraged by an unkind word, or by being snubbed by friends, or by a little disagreement, or misunderstanding. We are tempted to compromise or retaliate.
The story is told of how Sir Francis Drake, who had sailed around the world, was caught in a violent storm while crossing the Thames River. The storm threatened to capsize his boat and he cried out, "Shall I who have endured the storms of oceans be drowned in a ditch"? Have we come this far in our Christian journey to be stopped or discouraged by a few "tiny pebbles"?
