‎‭Joshua 14:6-9 NIV‬

‎[6] Now the people of Judah approached Joshua at Gilgal, and Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, “You know what the Lord said to Moses the man of God at Kadesh Barnea about you and me. [7] I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the Lord sent me from Kadesh Barnea to explore the land. And I brought him back a report according to my convictions, [8] but my fellow Israelites who went up with me made the hearts of the people melt in fear. I, however, followed the Lord my God wholeheartedly. [9] So on that day Moses swore to me, ‘The land on which your feet have walked will be your inheritance and that of your children forever, because you have followed the Lord my God wholeheartedly.’

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‎There is a popular mindset that can easily cost one their future. That mindset is assuming there are some major moments in life that determine the entire course of one's life, and hence these major moments should take all the focus and the minor moments be treated with low regard. However, reality often reveals that major moments are a culmination of minor moments, and sometimes, when taking a decision that will change one's life forever, it doesn't really feel major at all. It sometimes just feels like another Tuesday, because it is. It is another Tuesday, or Friday, or Monday. Every single moment of one's life matters. The moments we spend doing things deemed unimportant are much more important than we sometimes understand.

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‎The way you are today is a culmination of every single thing you've done since you were born, plus every single thing your parents did, whether major or minor, and even more, after all, we are a direct product of our environments. One can decide to simply turn their head in a certain direction. This head turn makes them see an image that though they don't know it, is registered in their subconscious, and will help shape whatever they will end up being.

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‎At a certain time, twelve individuals were sent out to spy the land that the Israelites sought to conquer via war. They twelve observed the city. They twelve returned. Two decided to report in a certain way, ten others decided to report in another way. Two were hailed, ten were rebuked. A simple report methodology was the dividing line between the Caleb/Joshua camp and the other ten. A simple report.

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‎As much as we would love to think that decision was independently made that day, it truly wasn't. That decision was made much earlier, even before they were sent to spy out the land. The decision was made with the minor and little actions they kept taking before that day. These actions helped them develop a mindset that sealed their fate later on, and likewise, Joshua's and Caleb's states of mind saved them on that day.

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‎Likewise, Moses the prophet always had subtle anger issues. In previous 'minor' moments, it didn't seem to be a problem. However, on one of those 'other tuesdays', he struck a rock, and the Lord had had enough of it. Nothing would have made Moses believe that his actions that day would seal him out of the promised land, but so it happened, and so it remained.

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‎Commonising everyday moments and choices is a guaranteed way for one to destroy their future. A simple article you randomly spend 20 minutes reading can subtly change your worldview, even without your knowledge. As a young man, I once read something that suggested heaven was a timeless space. It was just a Facebook post, a short one. It stuck in my head without my knowledge. Years later, as a minister, I was delivering the word and I preached that heaven was timeless. My pastor promptly corrected me by showing me the official position of the Bible. Heaven, as it turned out, wasn't timeless. Rather, Jesus is the timeless one. That day, I thought back to how much that one post had skewed my thinking without even knowing it.

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‎This is also why we watch what we listen to. One sentence can change your path forever. A person once told me that my refusal to look at girls who were seductively dressed was problematic as though it would work now, what if I was trapped in a room with a girl and couldn't look away, what then would I do? I stupidly received these words and went on to test my 'resistance' to girls by looking at nude photos (I was young, forgive me). It is sufficient to say that I spent a while trying to break an addiction that I would have easily skipped should I have not listened to those words that day.

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‎Big failures are a result of little compounding failures. A CEO that ended up stealing 4.5 billion dollars from a company didn't become a thief on the day they stole. Objects and idealogies formed in their minds over the years convinced them it was okay to do so. The murderer accepted that hatred was okay before carrying out their act. The decisions made over time and the activities allowed are just as significant as the 'big' public failure.

Minors and majors are simply points in time. The past is sealed, the future is a tree with infinite branches. The minors of the present determine the majors of the future. A handshake today could be a massive partnership tomorrow. A glance today could be regret tomorrow.

So what must we do? This is the reason we are advised to be led by the Spirit. It is evident that no human can tell if the action they take today will result in a disaster or a beautiful ending, though there are some obviously bad decisions and habits that most definitely are precursors to destruction.

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One of such habits is ruminating too much on past mistakes and errors. Yes, you messed up, we know. So, can you change that now? Not really. The time is gone. If you spend the current time you have being angry with your past, it's a guaranteed way to pile up more anger for your future self. We must learn how to say, 'I messed up yesterday, I won't mess up today.' And should you mess up today, then don't mess up tomorrow. The shackles of regret are strong and unforgiving, and the sheer power they possess can be astounding at times. Wasting your precious time and life musing over something that can't be changed is a prime example of a bad choice.

Once we begin to understand that every second is vital, we begin to spend less time of what truly doesn't matter much to us and more time building the future we want to see.