I think that having a big vision is a good thing.

Vision like “Change the World!” is inspiring and very much a part of God’s heart, of course. But when we have big vision, often our temptation is to assume that we must use “big tactics” to accomplish that vision. We assume that something that changes the world will need to be done on a large scale with massive, broad simultaneous impact.

But that approach is all event, no process. Jesus’ approach is different, a combination of event and process that produces growth, multiplication, and movement. Jesus told us that the kingdom of God (a “big vision” that will ultimately change the world) doesn’t start with a big bang. He said it was like a seed that grows, like a little bit of yeast that goes into a batch of dough, like a treasure hidden in a field. Paradoxically, the “big thing” that will change the world is actually a “small thing” that grows and reproduces, creating an exponential process that results in a movement.

Missional Communities are part of the “small thing” that eventually produces a “big thing” that changes the world. Mother Teresa’s quote helps those of us with big vision to focus on the processes that will actually bring about the big vision. She said, “Don’t look for big things, just do small things with great love.”

Small things with great love that eventually changes the world.

A great example of this dynamic was how the early church exploded in momentum by simply caring for those impacted by the devastating epidemics that swept through the Roman Empire in the second and third centuries. The first epidemic started in 165 AD, lasting 15 years and killing anywhere from a quarter to a third of the empire’s population. The second one happened almost a century later, again killing massive numbers of people. In the midst of the daily horror of family members and friends dying all around, many people fled the cities and sought refuge in the countryside—especially those among the privileged classes, who had estates where they could retire until the devastation passed. The pagan priests and philosophers of the day were powerless to explain the disaster or curb its advance, so many simply ran for their lives.

These responses are what you would expect in a time of great disaster and upheaval. The interesting thing is that one group of people didn’t leave the cities in panic. In fact, this group of people purposefully stayed in the cities to look after the sick and dying, providing whatever they could for those who were suffering, even if it was merely a decent burial once the disease took their life. These people extended care and love beyond the boundaries of family and tribe and took care of any sufferers they came across.

The remarkable people who stayed in the cities to care for those being ravaged by the epidemics were Christians. Many actually lost their lives while caring for others. These early followers of Jesus weren’t necessarily trying to do anything heroic or significant. They were expressing simple obedience to Jesus’ command to “do to others what you would have them do to you,” and living out his word that “it is more blessed to give than to receive.” Because they did these small things with great love, they gave sufferers hope that stretched beyond the grave and a compelling vision to root their lives in from that point on.

It is likely that many of the sick who did recover simply became Christians and joined the communities that had nursed them back to health. Because of these kinds of dynamics, Christianity went from a marginal sect on the fringes of Jewish society to the most dominant faith of the entire Roman Empire within a few hundred years.

All because of small things done with great love.

This is ultimately what being a Missional Community is all about. As we learn to live as an extended family on mission with Jesus, our job isn’t to try to “do big things.” It’s simply to do the small things we see around us with great love, trusting that God will take our small things and all the other small things we don’t see and weave them all together into a tapestry that announces His love for humanity and calls all people to new life under God, who is making everything new.

3DM’s main resource for helping people in our Learning Communities learn how to do these kinds of small things with great love is an upcoming book called Leading Missional Communities, due out in mid-September, which you can read more about and pre-order here.

(**Also, for more information on the epidemics in the Romans Empire and the Christians’ repsonse, see Chapter 4 of Rodney Stark’s remarkable book The Rise of Christianity.)