So I discovered on YouTube recently this bloke, Willard Wiggins.
Wiggins makes pieces of artwork that are inside the eye of a needle, stuff so small that he works with a microscope to work his art.
To give you an idea, Wiggins once made an elephant sculpture from a grain of sand, and the tail on the elephant was a strand of floating dust he plucked from the air.
He paints his masterpieces with a single hair, plucked from a houseflies back! How incredible is that? I have trouble even seeing the words on my laptop let alone using a flies hair to paint with.
Well, maybe the best bit in this little story is that recently, Wiggins sold his life works to a collector for $20 million dollars. Doesn’t sound so weird anymore.
The point is here, I think that in the busyness we are in our are creating around ourselves we can miss the small stuff that can actually make a huge difference in our lives.
Elijah in the Bible was on the run after defeating the prophets of Baal. (An amazing story and if you haven’t read it go and have a look in 1 Kings 18:20-40)
So Elijah is threatened after this, and runs and he is feeling lost and needing some encouragement in the battle he was in. God calls him out of the cave to stand on the side of the mountain as God’s presence passes by.
A great wind ripped the rocks of the mountain, but nothing, then a huge earthquake rattle the stone beneath his feet, nothing. Then a fire broke but still nothing. Then the bible says Elijah heard a gentle wind, like a whisper and it was there he found the presence of God almighty pass by.
If you had shown me Wiggins’ artwork, and put a needle in front of me I wouldn’t of even looked twice. Too small, to subtle, something that tiny can hold the masters work. Surely?
In your busyness, created or self inflicted, what does this still, small voice like a whisper look like to you? Have you heard it? Would you hear it?
Setting aside time to be still and quiet, with no distraction, no music, no agenda, and just come before God almighty on his terms, to allow space to tune yourself to his voice is all that is needed. Mighty men have conquered kingdoms and overthrown great powers, by finding the smallest of voices, smallest of moments with the greatest of all.
