WHAT GOD DOES WITH THE ORDINARY

My message and my preaching were not with wise and

 persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power,

so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power.

1 Corinthians 2:4-5

Do you look at yourself as an ordinary person? You’ve been asked to do a ministry or job that’s challenging, and you’ve thought, I can’t do that. There is nothing special about me. I don’t have what it takes. Perhaps many of us consider ourselves to be ordinary, but what does God do with the ordinary?

Zechariah prophesied about a coming time in Jerusalem. On that day HOLY TO THE Lord will be inscribed on the bells of the horses…Every pot in Jerusalem and Judah will be holy to the Lord Almighty (Zechariah 14:20-21). Bells and pots are common things. God takes that which is common and makes it holy, set apart for His service and glory.

I have a unique serving bowl. When I serve food in it, the common response is, “That’s a beautiful bowl.” I also have many bowls that are ordinary. When I serve food in them, I hear things like, “This looks delicious!” or “What is this?” With the ordinary bowls, attention is drawn to what is inside the bowl, not to the bowl itself. 

Peter and John were two ordinary men. They were fishermen, a common trade in their day. They weren’t highly educated, nor did they hold prominent positions in the community.

Then Jesus called them to follow Him. Immediately they left their trade and spent three years following Jesus. Their lives were transformed. After Jesus’ death, these two men, along with the other disciples, became bold, effective witnesses through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Because they boldly proclaimed Jesus as Lord and Savior, Peter and John were arrested. They stood before the religious leaders giving their testimony. When they (the religious leaders) saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus (Acts 4:13).

Jesus is in the business of taking that which is ordinary and transforming it into the astonishing.

Lord, will You fill this ordinary vessel with Your Spirit, so that other are astonished as they see You, not me.

Jan Burkhart