When Mole Hills Become Mountains

We are often told “don’t make mountains out of mole hills.” It is important to not make a big deal out of nothing, to not let the little things become the big things, but what happens when the little things pile up? What if the mole hills start to cause problems?

Last week, I was helping my parents on their ranch and part of that included irrigating the fields. The water comes through a dirt canal, and a weir allows a certain amount of water into each system for the farmers to use. Between the weir and the pipe system in my parents’ field, there is a screen to keep debris from entering the pipes which would block the flow of water. When we went to clean the screen one day, the water poured over the end because it was so clogged no water could get through. Yet what clogged the screen was nothing large, only tiny spots of algae each no larger than one or two holes in the screen. By themselves, the little bits of algae could cause no problem whatsoever, but together they plugged the entire screen and had to be scraped off.

Matthew 7:3-5 New American Standard Bible (NASB)

Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ and behold, the log is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.

In the original Greek, the speck is like a piece of sawdust. The log does not refer to a beam, but rather plywood or particle board. See, the log He said to take out, was not some really big sin that was causing problems, but a build up of sawdust. It was a whole bunch of tiny particles which by themselves would have only been an irritation, but all together they caused a serious problem, just like the algae in the screen.

The little things may only be little things on their own, “little” sins or character flaws that aren’t that big of a deal, but when there are a lot of them, when they are overlooked and not dealt with, they become a big problem as a whole. It is so tempting to let things slide, to overlook the little things, and say they aren’t causing any problems so it’s not a big deal. But they will build up. That is how it works with overlooked sin. It breeds like rabbits, or think of rolling a snowball down a hill, gradually gathering more and more snow until it is huge. When sin is not dealt with, it spreads to every area of our lives.

When we refuse to forgive one person, it becomes harder to forgive others. We start to hold on to things that would ordinarily not have bothered us until everything bothers us and we are perpetually offended. I know this because I have seen it working in my life. I realized recently that ten years ago, I was never offended. I could laugh off anything, but now everything bothers me, even things that have nothing to do with me, all because I let bitterness toward one person take root in my heart.

The same principle goes for any sin, or character flaw. By itself it’s not a big deal, but if we let it go, overlooked, then it will multiply. We will lose our sensitivity to the Spirit and other sins and flaws will creep in. Over time, the little things will add up. The mole hills will pile up to make a huge mountain. We need to regularly examine our lives, asking God to reveal and remove anything that offends Him. That is how we keep mole hills from becoming mountains, by taking care of the mole hills as they pop up.

What mountains or mole hills are in your life? Are you dealing with the little things as they pop up, or do you sweep them under the rug? Take some time to ask God to reveal what needs to be changed in your heart. Let Him remove what is offensive in you so that you will not wake up one day and find that you hate who you have become.

On a side note, if you find yourself facing a mountain already, fasting is a great way to break down those strongholds and barriers. Pentecost is 4 weeks away, and my church will be fasting in preparation for that, praying for revival. Fasting was a regular part of the early church, and I think that is why we see so little revival now, because we don’t do that any more. I have included a link that talks about the how and why of fasting for more information. If you feel led, I invite you to join us in fasting and praying, preparing the way for the Spirit to move, in our lives and our world.