God’s Equation: When Little Becomes Much

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I’ve always been fascinated by how God works through what feels small. Time and time again, I’ve watched Him take my “not enough” and turn it into more than I could have ever dreamed.

I remember when a handful of us moms in Montana stepped out in faith to start the Hope Pregnancy Center in Kalispell, Montana. We didn’t have much—no big budget, no fancy training, just hearts that wanted to help women in crisis. On paper, it didn’t add up; we were underqualified, underfunded, and often overwhelmed. But God took every whispered prayer, every dollar given, and every tiny act of obedience, and He multiplied them. 

Today, countless women and children have been impacted because a few women offered their “not enough” into His hands. And I’ve seen it in the hidden places, too.

For twenty years, my grandmother lived with us. That meant folding her laundry alongside mine, preparing her meals, helping her dress, and sitting with her in her later years when words were mainly gone but presence still mattered. Some days it felt small and unseen—ordinary acts no one else noticed. But God multiplied that season, too. 

He grew patience in me. He grew compassion in my children as they watched what it meant to honor and serve. Even now, after her passing, the legacy of love continues in ways only God could design. Over and over again, Scripture reminds me: God delights in multiplying the ordinary.

God’s Multiplication Is Different from Ours

In human math, 1 + 1 = 2. But in God’s math, one surrendered life can impact thousands.

• Abraham was just one man, yet God told him, “I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars” (Genesis 26:4, NLT).
• Gideon faced an army too big to count with only 300 men, but God multiplied their courage and brought victory (Judges 7).
• The early church started with 120 believers praying in an upper room, and the Spirit multiplied them into a worldwide movement (Acts 2). That’s the beauty of God’s equation: what looks impossible in our hands becomes miraculous in His.

What Feels Small in Your Hands?

Maybe it’s your time: you barely have enough to give. Maybe it’s your resources: you wish you could do more. Maybe it’s your influence: you feel unnoticed, unqualified, unseen.

I’ve been there. I’ve felt that. But here’s the truth I’ve learned: God multiplies the ordinary.

“His power at work in us can do far more than we dare ask or imagine.” (Ephesians 3:20, NLT)

The Cost of Trust

Let’s be honest—handing our “little” to God can feel scary. It means letting go of control, pride, and our desire to see immediate results. But God always meets our surrender with His promise: “Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full—pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over” (Luke 6:38, NLT). God never wastes what is surrendered. He multiplies it.

The Reward of Faith

When you give God your little:

• He multiplies it into provision for your needs.
• He multiplies it into blessing for others.
• He multiplies it into eternal impact you may never see this side of heaven.
  

And maybe the sweetest reward? He multiplies Himself in you—His peace, His presence, His power. As Max Lucado once said, “Faith is not the belief that God will do what you want. Faith is the belief that God will do what is right.” And God is always right when He takes our smallest offering and weaves it into His eternal plan.

A Devotional Thought

Multiplication often starts in the hidden places: behind closed doors, in long nights of caregiving, in tiny acts of faithfulness. But those small yeses? God multiplies them into more than we could ever imagine.

So don’t despise your “little.” Put it in His hands. Your obedience, your sacrifice, your hidden faithfulness may be the very seed God uses to bless generations.

Reflection Questions

• What feels “too small” in your life right now—something you wonder if it matters?
• How might God be inviting you to trust Him with your not-enough?
• Who in your life has been blessed by your “small yes” to God?
• How can you remind your children that God delights in multiplying the ordinary?
  

A Prayer

Lord, I bring You what feels small in my hands. My time, my gifts, my resources—they don’t feel like enough. But I believe You are the God who multiplies. Use my life for Your glory. Do more than I can ask or imagine. And let the world see You through me. Amen.

Additional Resources

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