To accompany pilgrims through the mountains and valleys of their journeys, we’ve had to first allow Christ to begin to lead us along our own path to restoration. We’ve been developing our voices and our gifts so that we may bring others to Him for healing. Over the past decade, God has led us together to build the Little With Great Love community and pursue the mission of restoration. Here is how our story begins...
Our Founder, Lisa Martinez, set up an Etsy shop for her Mother-in-Law’s crochet items named Little With Great Love.
An artist, but not one trained in graphic design, Lisa’s first solo branding project was to develop the original logo (below). After all the work of setting up the shop, sales were sparse.
That same year Lisa & Mike Martinez started illuvint LLC, a boutique digital marketing company, which she ran out of their condo in Dallas. As a startup, this required the majority of time and energy.
2012
2014
While reflecting on a friend’s post in a private Facebook group for Catholics with infertility, the Holy Spirit inspired Lisa to write a scripture-based infertility devotional. Not the book she wanted to write, she jotted the idea down and put it aside.
A fruit born from the work of illuvint, iAmplify, a nonprofit to support the business side of religious organizations began to form.
This was also the year that the Martinez’s bought their first home and moved down to Austin, Texas.
2015
2017
Paperwork was filed with the IRS, and in March, iAmplify became an official 501c3 nonprofit.
In May, Richard, Lisa’s Dad, became gravely ill. After months of traveling back and forth to Florida, they moved him to Austin. God was clear – Lisa’s hands needed to let go of working to grow her business and nonprofit and hold onto her father’s as they began to prepare for his journey Home.
Knowing she also needed to focus on self-care, the mental health major returned to counseling. Lisa began Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy with a Catholic Psychologist trained to help treat victims of trauma.
The Holy Spirit resurrected the idea for Lisa to write the infertility devotional, and a crowd of confirmations followed. While caring for her little trinity – herself, dad, and husband – the slow and initially painful process of researching, writing and revising began.
2018
2019
Richard passed away, reunited with his wife, on March 13th.
Support from Mike and a tight group of family & friends were healing balm. Finishing EMDR Therapy, Lisa found the reprocessing of childhood trauma life-changing. Writing the devotional, based on her experience of grief over the loss of her parents and suffering 8-years of infertility, gave her pain an outlet and a purpose.
Lisa felt Christ, the “wounded healer,” calling her deeper into healing ministry. As Mother Teresa explains it, “the call within the call.”
The vision of Little With Great Love began to expand. The Holy Spirit connected our Founder with other infertile couples to interview them to share their stories. He also drew her together with other women in various states of life, striving and suffering in their own vocations. Through vulnerability and healing prayer, restoration was occurring.
2020
This band of disciples is kicking off the new year, ready to share our gifts and stories. Our stories are here for the glory of God and to accompany others amidst their joys and sorrows. Our work is to bring all things to Christ to order, heal, and restore.
This Little With Great Love work has begun this new chapter. And the Holy Spirit has much more in store!
We are honored by your presence here. When we share from our journeys, it is out of a desire to connect with you and accompany you along yours. We look forward to hearing from you here, on Social Media, and we hope in real life too!
Founder, is a disciple, wife, spiritual mother, storyteller and silly heart. She loves creative mediums that range from writing, drawing, painting, design, singing, playing guitar, sewing, crafting, and baking. Her roles include entrepreneur, non-profit founder, and writer. Her calling is to bring restoration in Christ to the broken. She lives in Austin with her mountain-man husband, Mike, who she loves to travel through life with as well as around the world.
