No Difference

Number 27 in the Norman Rockwell inspired blog series.

The word magnitude, in mathematics, means, "the relative size of an object."  

In everyday language, magnitude means "the importance, quality, or caliber of something."  

Jesus told a parable of a King who told a group of his followers what they did to the least of the kingdom, they did to him, and what they failed to do for the least of the kingdom, they failed to do for him.

Jesus understood that there is no magnitude, regardless of appearances.  The cobbler in Rockwell's painting is struggling with the concept, as most of us do, and for the same reasons.  First, he's too close to the subject, and second, he's comparing one size shoe to another size shoe.

When we back away and remove the standard of measurement, magnitude becomes a meaningless word.  Imagine for a moment what life would be like if you weren't dealing with the issue of magnitude.   Why, you could do the best at everything you do, without concern about the magnitude of the task.  That means writing a blog is as important as writing a novel, a three mile run is the same as a marathon, and talking to your neighbor across the hedge is no different than addressing a group of your coworkers at the annual sales meeting.

Wow.  That means everything does matter - and it does.