The Little Flower

 

See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labour or spin. (Matthew 6:28 NIV)

How big is your vision?

Have you ever thought about what God could do through you that would impact someone else’s life?

Jesus Christ gathered together a diverse group of twelve men to gain a vision that was so big that it wouldn’t just impact one or two lives but would impact the entire world.

He told them that He “came to seek and to save what was lost” (Luke 19:10). And as His loyal followers, they were and we are to do the same – to seek the lost and guide them to the path of salvation.

When I was a young teenager, church leaders who came to my school to teach “Religious Knowledge”, would quote from Matthew 28:19, telling all the young people that it was our mission to “go and make disciples of all nations”, then they would proceed to give us instructions on how we were to make disciples. I never liked their one-size-fits-all approach since even at that young age, I believed that because of people’s different personalities and experiences, everyone’s approach couldn’t be the same but must be a fit for each individual.

Introducing someone to Jesus Christ and the Kingdom of God is the main goal but how it’s done can’t be the same for everyone – for the intrdu-cer and the introdu-cee.

Recently, I read about a teenaged girl, not yet fifteen, who was determined to join the convent, Lisieux Carmel. She had a heart for Jesus and from the age of four she already knew her calling to religious life. Her name was Thérèse, but she was nicknamed the Little Flower.

To this end she said,

“It is impossible for me to grow up, so I must bear with myself such as I am with all my imperfections. But I want to seek out a means of going to heaven by a little way, a way that is very straight, very short and totally new.”

What’s quite interesting about Thérèse is that she became a cloistered nun, so after entering Lisieux Carmel, she never left. She did not go on missions, she did nothing heroic, she never started a religious order, she never went out to evangelize, but she had a big vision of standing at the foot of the cross, collecting Jesus’ blood and giving it to the lost.

Thérèse devoted herself to loving Jesus and praying for sinners. She abandoned herself in complete surrender to Jesus and continual acceptance of His will. She practiced what she termed the little way – doing small things with tremendous love, and every little thing she did, Thérèse wrote down.

Thérèse’s vision was to be realized after her death, as those writings were published and she became one of the most famous saints in the Catholic Church. Ironically, she is the patron saint of missionaries.

Beloved, the Little Flower did not step out of the convent, yet she has influenced countless lives. Her approach to the spiritual life was simple and practical. There was no fanfare, no gimmickry, no pretence or awkwardness, just genuine love for Jesus Christ. The Little Flower with a big vision for mission and evangelism in a completely different way.

Every path, though headed in the same direction, is not the same. Every method to lead others to Jesus cannot be the same for every person. Thérèse looked to Jesus and so should we.

Let Spirit be your guide. Let Spirit lead the way and show you how to share your faith and the more than good news in a practical and personal way suited to you so that you don’t come across as disingenuous.

The Little Flower practiced evangelism in its purest form, sharing with the world what Jesus Christ had done in her life, you should too.

Amen †

Shelley Johnson “The Little Flower” ©2026 April 25, 2026