For those of you that don’t know me, I love coffee. I love the taste. I love the warmth. I love the smell. I love it in the morning. I love it in the evening. I love it here and there. I love it anywhere. I would not, I could not, go a morning without my coffee. And yes, I would drink it with Green Eggs and Ham!!

Are you ready for this? I am not drinking the thing I love so much. I’m currently fasting coffee. I’ve been on strict fasts before, but this one has been a challenge. Not only because of my coffee addiction, but because my daily habits and routines have come to a crashing halt. My motivation to…..well….to do just about everything plummeted below sea level. The first few days I thought I might actually wake up in Heaven! Cause of death: coffee withdrawals.

While I take a light hearted approach to the narrative of my fasting woes, my heart was heavy with sadness regarding a personal matter…the matter I have taken to fasting and prayer. But I was still foreboding over the potential for an undesirable outcome. My mind was diligently trying to prepare me for ‘What If’ this, or ‘What If’ that. The issue I am praying about doesn’t seem like it will have a desirable outcome: not according to what I am hearing or feeling. So my husband says something I’ve heard a billion times before: simple yet profound; short and sweet.

“So stop looking at what you see, hear and feel. Look at this situation through the eyes of Faith.”

This resonated with me!! This commonly regurgitated notion of living by faith and not by sight was exactly what I needed to catapult me to freedom (2 Corinthians 5:7)! It was this small, simple sentence that has had the biggest impact on my mindset. Being anxious about it was bringing me lower than my coffee withdrawals, and worrying won’t change one thing. But faith will!

Faith gives me hope that no matter the outcome, God is in control; that He loves me and my family more than I do; that He has good plans for us; that all things work together for my good; that He knows the desires of my heart. THIS is faith speaking now. No more what ifs.

I don't know what the outcome will be, but seeing my situation through faith gives me peace about an unknown future.

Don’t be afraid to share some short and sweet spiritual encouragement to someone. It’s bigger than what you might think. And don’t underestimate the ‘small’ sacrifices you make. Let’s get back to my coffee, shall we? I’m only fasting coffee: nothing else. To you, this may seem small: but to me it’s huge, and God knows it. Regardless of the outcome of my circumstance, I know that great fruit will come forth out this time of fasting, prayer and reading His Word. God recognizes and honors our sacrifices, no matter how small.

Don’t overlook the small things anymore: a listening ear, a compliment, a word of encouragement, a text of appreciation or simple spiritual reminders……$5 in the offering plate, one home cooked meal for a sick friend or fasting coffee.

“Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.” Mathew 13:32 Remember, smallest things can have the biggest impact!