Trusted With Little, Trusted With More
Devotional week 34
“Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much.” - Luke 16:10 (NIV)
What is “little” to you? And what is “much”?
The answer often depends on what we compare it with. A modest salary may seem like very little. A simple job may seem insignificant beside a prestigious career. A routine task may feel unimportant because no one notices it.
But Jesus invites us to look at these things differently.
In Luke 16, Jesus tells the story of a manager who, facing the end of his position, acted shrewdly with what was still in his hands. Jesus does not praise his dishonesty. What He highlights is his ability to think about the future and act with the resources entrusted to him. He then turns His attention to His disciples: the way we handle what we receive reveals whether we can be trusted.
This connects with Proverbs 22:29: “Do you see someone skilled in their work? They will serve before kings...” God cares not only about our intentions, but also about how we carry out our responsibilities. Faithfulness involves diligence, competence and integrity.
There is a story often told about John F. Kennedy during a visit to NASA in 1962. On meeting a member of the cleaning staff, the President is said to have asked what he was doing there. The man's reported answer was: “Mr President, I’m helping to put a man on the Moon.” The details of the story are difficult to verify, but the image remains powerful: an apparently small task can take on a different meaning when we see the greater purpose behind it.
Jesus, however, takes this further. What we call “much” in this life is still “little” in the light of eternity. Our salary, position, possessions, abilities and opportunities are temporary. That is why He asks:
“So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches?”
Luke 16:11, NIV
This changes the question. Instead of simply asking, “When will God give me more?”, we can ask: “Am I being faithful with what He has already placed in my hands?”
Perhaps your present responsibility seems small. Do it well. Use your abilities wisely. Manage your resources with integrity. Serve others through your work.
What you have today is temporary. But the way you manage it reveals who you are becoming before God.
Challenge
Choose one responsibility today that you consider small or unimportant. Treat it as something entrusted to you by God, and carry it out with care, excellence and integrity, even if no one notices.
Prayer
Lord, teach me to be faithful with what You have placed in my hands. Help me to work diligently, use my abilities well and remember that everything I have in this life is temporary. Keep me from constantly seeking “more” while neglecting what You have already entrusted to me. May my work, resources and opportunities be used to serve You and point towards the true riches of eternity. Amen.
A Tent International Devotional