Life is made up of little things. One said, "Life is not a bundle of big experiences but a big bundle of little ones."

        Sir Humphrey Davy, English chemist (1778-1829) said, "Life is made up, not of great sacrifices or duties but of little things, in which smiles and kindness, and small obligations given habitually are what preserve the heart and secure comfort."

        Dr. Henry A. Parker, pastor of First Baptist Church, Orlando, Florida said, "You cannot always be majoring upon the big things because life is largely composed of "little things." When a preacher stands in the pulpit to proclaim the unsearchable riches of Christ, it is a great temptation to deal with the great themes of the Bible as regeneration, the atonement, the doctrine of God, the doctrine of Jesus Christ, the doctrine concerning man's salvation, etc. We must remember that the Bible magnifies little things and little ideas. These little things really influence character and determine life."

I.   Little Things Are So Important

        "The Goodness of God" Middleton -- "Life for most of us, most of the time, is made up of little things -- tiny tasks, joys, services. Little things make people happy, and little things can also make them miserable. A kindly word, a little thoughtfulness here and there as the day slips by -- these are the crumbs of happiness. Do not despise them, lest when the evening finds you, you be hungry and disconsolate.

        There are so many opportunities for all of us to do some little extra kindness for friends, members of our families, our fellow workers and even casual acquaintances, which will make the day brighter and happier. You will meet ten, perhaps twenty, or perhaps even a hundred people. Every one of them will have the day brightened or darkened by the tone and manner of you greeting."

        It was the "mite" of the widow that grew into the greatest gift made that day in the temple. There was a woman who came to Jesus with an alabaster box of precious ointment. She broke it and anointed Christ before His crucifixion. The disciples gathered about the Master and reproved the woman for that which she had done. After all, it was a waste of about $900.00 of precious ointment. Jesus said to them, "Let her alone. She hath done what she could." When you and I render that kind of service for Jesus, it is not wasted.

Matt. 10:41 through Matt. 10:42 (KJV)
⁴¹ He that receiveth a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward; and he that receiveth a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward. ⁴² And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his reward.

        Little things reveal God's power and wisdom. Let us never judge by size because some of the most wonderful things in nature are the smallest. A flea leaps 200 times its length. A man would have to jump 1,200 feet to equal this proportionately. The housefly takes 440 steps to travel three inches, and does it in a half second -- corresponding to a man running 20 miles in a minute. An ant lifts a load many, many times its own weight -- a man would have to lift a diesel locomotive and carry it on his back to compare with that of the ant. Turnip seed, under good conditions, increase their weight 15 times a minute, and in rich soil turnip seeds may increase their weight 25,000 time a day. There is no force more powerful than a growing squash. A squash 18 days old has been harnessed in such a way that in its growing process it lifted 50 pounds on lever -- 19 days later it lifted 5,000 pounds.

        "Bless the LORD, O my soul, O LORD my God, thou are very great . . . O LORD how manifold are thy works! In wisdom has thou made them all; the earth is full of thy riches." -- Ps. 104:1, 24.

        Little things become great things when done in God's power. Judges 4 records the effectiveness of a tent pin -- a wooden peg -- struck by a hammer in the hands of a woman. It was God's way of using a seemingly trivial item to give Israel the victory over her enemies. Three chapters later, the story is told of 300 men with pitchers and trumpets who routed the alien armies. Some weapons! And in chapter 15, the author tells us that the jawbone of a donkey wielded by God's man slew a thousand invading Philistines.

        Little things can produce mighty things. Do you realize that the heart within your body is a tiny thing; and yet, I am told that in a period of 24 hours, it will pump enough blood to fill a railroad tank car. You know the size of a drop of water, and yet enough of them in the right place will produce a river or an ocean. Emerson said one day, "The creation of a thousand forests is in one acorn." John Homer Miller says in his book, Take a Look at Yourself, "A teakettle singing on a stove was the beginning of the steam engine; a skirt waving on a clothesline was the beginning of the balloon; a spider web strung across a garden path suggested the suspension bridge; a lantern swinging in a tower suggested the pendulum; an apple falling from a tree caused the discovery of the law of gravitation." Yes, it is the little things that God takes and uses in a might way.

        The Bible magnifies the little things, the weak things and the foolish things. God has a way of taking the little things and multiplying and using them for His glory.

        The little maid in Naaman's household became the most important person he ever met. It was the two fish and five barley loaves of a little lad that fed the multitudes. It was the "mite" of the widow that grew into the greatest gift made that day in the temple.

        A slender rod in Moses' hand divided the Red Sea, brought water from rock and defeated the Amalekites.

Ex. 14:16 (KJV)
¹⁶ But lift thou up thy rod, and stretch out thine hand over the sea, and divide it: and the children of Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the sea.

Ex. 17:5 through Ex. 17:6 (KJV)
⁵ And the LORD said unto Moses, Go on before the people, and take with thee of the elders of Israel; and thy rod, wherewith thou smotest the river, take in thine hand, and go. ⁶ Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the rock in Horeb; and thou shalt smite the rock, and there shall come water out of it, that the people may drink. And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.

        God used a dumb donkey to get a message across to Balaam.

Num. 22:28 (KJV)
²⁸ And the LORD opened the mouth of the ass, and she said unto Balaam, What have I done unto thee, that thou hast smitten me these three times?

        Hornets drove out the Hittites.

Ex. 23:28 (KJV)
²⁸ And I will send hornets before thee, which shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite, from before thee.

        With a small pebble, David, when just a boy, defeated the giant, Goliath.

1 Sam. 17:48 through 1 Sam. 17:52 (KJV)
⁴⁸ And it came to pass, when the Philistine arose, and came and drew nigh to meet David, that David hasted, and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine. ⁴⁹ And David put his hand in his bag, and took thence a stone, and slang it, and smote the Philistine in his forehead, that the stone sunk into his forehead; and he fell upon his face to the earth. ⁵⁰ So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and smote the Philistine, and slew him; but there was no sword in the hand of David. ⁵¹ Therefore David ran, and stood upon the Philistine, and took his sword, and drew it out of the sheath thereof, and slew him, and cut off his head therewith. And when the Philistines saw their champion was dead, they fled. ⁵² And the men of Israel and of Judah arose, and shouted, and pursued the Philistines, until thou come to the valley, and to the gates of Ekron. And the wounded of the Philistines fell down by the way to Shaaraim, even unto Gath, and unto Ekron.

        God chooses foolish things to confound the wise, and the weak things to shame the strong.

1 Cor. 1:27 (KJV)
²⁷ But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;

II.   Little Things Can Cause Much Harm.

        A tiny little speck within the eye can cause the greatest pain and irritation. We read in the paper about a great city being plunged into darkness because of a short circuit produced by a mouse that got into the machinery.

        "It was such a little nail, but somehow it came loose from the horse's shoe. The horse lost the shoe, went lame, and threw his rider. The message the rider carried was never delivered. The commander lost his battle; the king lost the war and was captured. He lost his country, and his people were enslaved. All for the want of a horseshoe nail."

        On Long's Peak in Colorado are the ruins of a gigantic tree. Naturalists tell us that it stood for more than four hundred years. During that time lightning struck it on at least fourteen different occasions. Innumerable storms and avalanches beat and crashed upon it. The towering giant, however, survived them all. Then one day an army of beetles attacked it; they gradually got to the trunk's center, destroying this magnificent tree's inner strength, so another king of the forest collapsed, having been felled by beetles, tiny insects, so small a man could crush one between his fingers.

        The tongue is a small part of the body but it can and does cause so much trouble, pain and heartache. "Behold, how great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire." (James 3:5)

        In south Alabama, in the town of Enterprise, there stands in the main square a monument. It is a monument to the boll weevil, because the boll weevil taught the people of that area a great lesson a number of years ago. They depended upon cotton for their money crop, but the boll weevil completely destroyed their crops. For several years many of the people were poverty stricken until they learned diversified farming. Now their main money crop is peanuts. Based on their experience with the little pest someone suggested that they place a monument to him in a prominent place.

        A FROWN -- What shadows and gloom ride upon the wings of a frown! Perhaps some frowns are inescapable in this world but we would be wise to hold them to an irreduciable minimum. A frown will darken the highest experiences and divert our best intentions. A frown will lock the door on many opportunities and make void and empty many otherwise happy experiences.

        Spurgeon said, "Death can hide in a drop and ride in the breath of air. Our greatest danger lies hidden in little things."

III.   Little Things Can Be Such A Blessing.

        Middleton in his book The Goodness of God says, "Many of us miss the purest happiness because we strive to do some great thing and so overlook the golden opportunities of doing for others little, helpful, meaningful things. By using every opportunity to speak a kind word or offer a helpful hand we are rewarded at each day's end with a peace that surpasses all understanding."

        Thomas Dreier, essayist and advertising specialist, St. Petersburg, Fla.: "One of the things all of us need to learn in this rushing age is to enjoy the little things more. Most big things are made out of a combination of little things, so naturally, if we enjoy the part intensely, we cannot help enjoying the whole."

        "You don't get much sunshine in here, do you?" remarked a woman to the operator as she entered in a large department store. "Only what you bring in!" replied the elevator operator. "Some folks carry enough sunshine around with them to light others up a bit." How very true! We can take sunshine with us -- a thoughtful word, and understanding look, a kind act can bring sunshine into our lives. Even when we're tired and come home "in the dumps" we can remember to bring along some thoughtful sunshine.