“Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff, and It’s All Small Stuff”
Not only is this a book that my dad gave me a couple of years ago, but it’s also a phrase that I have heard him say countless times throughout my adult life. Any time I had a problem, or even worse- was worried about a potential problem, I always remember that being his go-to phrase. It was something that consistently helped take the edge off of whatever I was stressing over. It taught me that the small things weren’t worth my worry.
On the flip side, at World Race training camp during one of the sessions I heard “remember, the small decisions end up making the big decisions” or something along those lines. The point of this train of thought was that all of the little choices in life end up defining us as a person. For example: that one piece of gossip that we spread might not seem major, but when we routinely spread rumors or negative talk, that no longer becomes an isolated incident but a quality of our character. The seemingly small decisions that we made have now had a greater effect- our reputation.
We all have those days where if it can go wrong, it will. Good ole Murphy’s Law. For me, I had one the other day. Not a single thing was going my way. There’s no need to get into details, but it was one small thing after another weighing me down. As the day progressed, I remember my dad’s voice telling me not to sweat the small stuff, so I continued on maintaining a surprisingly positive attitude throughout it all. There was no need getting hung up on factors outside of my control. But by the end of the day, I said to myself “I wish just one big thing had happened to me”. This isn’t my sentiment now, but at the time I truly meant it. I was overwhelmed by the barrage of inconveniences and problems that seemed to all spring up at once.
I equated the conglomeration of smaller issues to be the same as or greater than one major problem. So much so that I had briefly wished that something actually bad had happened, instead of the multitude of insignificant issues. This got me thinking, maybe the smaller things really do add up. It was here when I remembered the World Race training camp statement and simultaneously, the echo of my dad’s voice.
So which is it? Should I not sweat the small stuff, or should I be constantly aware of the small decisions in life and their ultimate impact? The short answer, is both
While yes all of the small decisions that we make will eventually lead us to the paths we take in life, as long as we are aware of that we can prevent those decisions from becoming habits. Although- we shouldn’t sweat the small stuff. Everyone makes mistakes, that’s human nature. Inconveniences and irritations do occur. There’s no point in getting hung up on past decisions or circumstances that we have no control over.
As I kneeled down to pray that night after my Murphy’s Law day, a realization swept over me. “Don’t sweat” does not equal “don’t remember”. It means, don’t get caught up in the small stuff. Things happen. That’s life. If you let every event or circumstance weigh you down, you’re going to miss what God is doing in the background.
Since then, I have been trying to make the most of the opportunities I have been provided by these variations from my expectations. Maybe an extra hour at the DMV is a chance to talk to someone next to me about Jesus. Or that cold I couldn’t kick was God’s way of telling me I need to slow down and re-evaluate which direction I’m going. Maybe that test I failed can be used to teach me that I need to focus less on other activities or do something different. You get the point.
The way I look at it, life is full of things not going our way.
We can either wallow in our own pity and fantasize about what if everything had gone exactly according to plan, or cheerfully accept that sometimes in life we hit road blocks and know that God is able to work in our favor through any and every situation. I find that sometimes, the situations that I thought to be the biggest inconveniences end up to be the biggest blessings. I have faith that the creator of the universe knows what He’s doing, and that He can and does use every situation for my benefit- if I’ll allow Him to. He can quite literally do anything. I have a hard time believing that that C in biology is going to stop His grand plan for you that you’ve been patiently waiting for. Or that that speeding ticket alone is going to ruin your finances.
Now, I’m not speaking on serious tragedies in this blog, but rather every-day life happenings and things that we tell ourselves are more important than they truly are. That topic is for another day.
I encourage all of us to take this lifestyle to heart. Don’t sweat the small stuff, but don’t forget it either. Our path isn’t guided by one or two leaps, but by each and every step we take. And hey, we might just be surprised what God can do when we’re open and obedient in all situations.
