I Like Little Things

My name is Paul. “Hi Paul.” And it means little. For the life of me I don’t know why my parents would name me little. Maybe because I was small when I was born, more likely they just liked the name. Names have an affect on you, like the country song, “A Boy Named Sue.” As a result I have always liked small things. My wife is petite, I had a small horse, all my dogs have been small (except for Porthos, but I am over compensating), I have a small motorcycle, and I like walking short distances. All of this because my parents named me Little (I have a friend named Paul Title, that’s right). 

There are a lot of small things in the Bible too. Jesus said to let the little children come to him. He kept his Aposltes to twelve and his inner circle to just thee. All you need is a small amount of faith, like a mustard seed. Zacheus was small, and of course the smallest person in the Bible, Knee high-miah. Ok not funny. Even the Apostle Paul is said to have been short.

Why does this matter? Because the smallest, shortest, verse in the Bible is John 11:35, “Jesus wept.” I know that the verses were put there by men, but of all the verses in the Bible, this one was chosen to be the shortest, “Jesus wept.” The scripture only records Jesus weeping twice, over the spiritual darkness of Jerusalem, and this passage. There were other times I am sure, in Gethsemene, the beatings, and on the cross, but none of them specifically says it. So, what is the context of the shortest verse in Bible that moves Jesus to tears? The death of his good friend Lazarus.

Following this verse it says that the people around him observed his tears and speculated that it was because he had loved  Lazarus so much. His tears, Jesus’ tears, God’s tears, were for the death of a good friend. Therefore, It is ok to cry, it’s manly to cry, and to cry in public. 

My good friend Dan passed away this week, and I will be involved in the funeral. Yesterday I was preparing what I will say, and I wept. A flood of emotion came over me and I knew I would miss him, but that’s OK! If Jesus can weep, so can I. Continue to pray for the family over the next couple of months as they adjust to a new  normal, and remember, it’s alright to weep, both tears of joy and tears sorrow. I’m just saying...