Acorn to Oak Tree
by Malcolm Wood
There is an old English proverb: ‘Mighty oaks from little acorns grow’, meaning small beginnings can have huge results. We may think the kind act or word of encouragement that we give is quite insignificant but, if it is carried out in obedience to God, it has the potential of producing something of enormous value in the Kingdom of God.
Recently I heard a story which reminded me once again how God can use the most unlikely of people and circumstances to achieve His eternal purposes. The story concerns a Detroit Sunday school teacher, who, in 1854, visited a boy from his class at work in a shoe shop, a seventeen-year-old, who had little interest in God or religion. During his visit he was able to lead this young man into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Very few people have heard of Edward Kimball, that obedient Sunday School teacher, whereas far more have heard of D. L. Moody, that young man who later became one of the world’s greatest evangelists and who also founded the Moody Bible Institute.
The amazing thing is that the story doesn’t end there. From that one simple act of obedience by Edward Kimball there follows, down through the decades, a whole sequence of events and connections involving individuals, some well-known, others not so, but all of whom were obedient to the call of God on their lives. As a result of D. L. Moody’s ministry, a London pastor called F. B. Meyer came to faith, who in turn brought J. Wilber Chapman to faith, who greatly influenced Billy Sunday, another prominent evangelist of the twentieth century. Billy Sunday was integral to Mordecai Ham coming to faith, and it was Mordecai Ham who led Billy Graham to the Lord. The rest, as they say, is history!
There certainly is no telling what can happen in God’s economy to those simple seeds, sown in faith. It certainly is an inspiring story, and I recommend you read all about it in full.
May the Lord inspire us all to continue being faithful with whatever He tells us to do, even when it doesn’t seem very important to us.
Prayer: Dear Lord, please help me to be more attentive to Your voice, and to do what You tell me to do, however small and insignificant it is, and to have the faith to trust You for the increase. Amen.
Malcolm Wood and his wife Anna became part of the Ellel family as House Managers at Ellel Grange in 1990. Since then they have been involved with many aspects of the developing Ministry. From 2001 until 2015 they were Directors of Ellel Scotland where they hosted several International Schools and Operation Blairmore and helped pioneer the exciting Creative Inspiration Weeks. They have three sons.
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