How Little Does It Take?

As a young Christian, my interaction with God was often quite emotional. 

My soul needed lots of healing, and I repeatedly experienced His love through my feelings.  After a while, this need for catharsis threatened to become a false standard through which I measured my relationship with Him. I wanted “heaven to fall” each time I prayed, needing continuous signs and reassurance for the littlest of things. Soon it was time to grow in faith and confidence, no matter how I felt.

As we mature in our walk with God, sometimes His voice isn’t quite as loud. It isn’t so much that He lets go, but His communication begins to soften.  He doesn’t coax, pat, or affirm every second, but begins to ask for trust and faith in spite of the dark.  Feelings and circumstances no longer define the “wellness of our soul.”  We begin to understand that it is a privilege to believe in His heart of love when life is disappointing or painful.

Some of the things I have learned as the owner of horses relates to this.

When the quality of responsiveness is developed in a horse, it takes less effort to get the desired action instead of more.  When I want my horse to do something, I have been taught to ask myself, “How little does it take?” I must resist the urge to ask with force or abrupt movements. He is consistently given the opportunity to respond to the slightest request.  If necessary, more pressure is applied until what is desired begins to happen. Though the goal is understanding and lightness, I am ready to do whatever it takes to get the message across.

What if when God seems to be silent, He is simply trying to refine communication?  What if the Father is saying, “How little does it take?”  Must He clobber us over the head to get us to check on a friend or bring a meal to a hurting soul?  Does He really need to write FEED THE POOR across the sky in flaming letters to spur us to action? 

While teaching a horse something new, the trainer must exaggerate his request.  When the animal begins to demonstrate even the slightest understanding, the human must reward.  (This usually means an abrupt removal of all pressure, along with a few seconds  of rest.)  The method I employ,  calls this rewarding the slightest try.  This is extremely important, since the horse must be affirmed as it attempts to figure out what is desired. After the gross motor skill is understood, cues are refined and the request becomes almost invisible to an onlooker.

So it is with obedience and communication with God.   Sometimes He refines and softens His way of asking and hopes to move us without the need for big movements and  strong emotions. He wants the slightest check to halt us and a nudge to get us moving, no matter our natural tendency.  

As a young Christian, I had need for Him to use exaggeration as I learned about His love, and as I began moving in the right direction, He rewarded my slightest try.  It is now my goal to walk with Him in responsiveness and sensitivity, no longer dependent on continuous emotional affirmation.  

I want to remember that He might be asking, “How little does it take?”