The alarm rings. You get out of bed, like every day, and stumble to the kitchen. Your hair is lopsided as you start water for tea, rustle around in the fridge for a bite to eat. You were tired last night and left crumbs, so you grab a cloth to wipe down the counter while the water boils. As you reach for the sink faucet, your bare foot kicks the pile you swept after dinner but forgot to sweep into the dustpan. You mentally add things to your to-do list for the day.
By the time you settle with your bible to snatch a moment with God, you feel the weight of the ordinary bending you down.
You and I are steeped in the ordinary aren’t we? Swimming in the mundane details of daily life. Yet when I crack my bible open, the extraordinary… the supernatural… flies off the page and into my heart. Do you feel it too?
We were created for a glorious purpose – to love. To love with our whole being all those the Lord sees fit to cross our paths. We are called to be light… to share the truth of God’s love for His people by our words and deeds. Yet how easy it is to be weighed down and even distracted by the mundane.
We all know the stories… stories of amazing missionaries who accomplished great things for the kingdom against impossible odds. George Mueller, Gladys Aylward, Amy Carmichael … the list goes on and on.
What distinguishes the men and women who have made a great impact for the kingdom?
The Lord uses the most ordinary people to show, go and tell. He does not require a special degree, lots of money, or incredible brilliance. No, what the Lord desires is a willing heart.
“My son, give me your heart, and let your eyes observe my ways.” Proverbs 23:26
Because we are each created uniquely, the Lord has unique ways for each of us to live out His purposes for us on earth.
For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. Ephesians 2:10
Many great heroes of the bible were ordinary people who chose to say yes to God. Noah said yes to building an ark. Abram (later called Abraham) said yes to leaving everything he knew. Moses, the son of a slave woman, said yes to returning to Egypt and confronting Pharaoh. The fishermen disciples, Peter, Andrew, James and John, said yes when Jesus called them to follow Him.
Saying yes to God is not always the easy path. And alas, few do.
Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few;” Matthew 9:37
But saying yes to Him is a choice even the most ordinary of us can make. And that choice will make our lives extraordinary.
The mission field is the entire world – we are each called to our own unique role in it. We each have the privilege of showing the world Jesus by our very lives, of going into places of great need to serve, of telling of His great goodness and of His faithfulness in our own story.
We just have to be willing. Are you?
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This really encourages me, Patti:
“We were created for a glorious purpose – to love. To love with our whole being all those the Lord sees fit to cross our paths.”
What seems ordinary to us–loving whoever God puts in front of us today–is truly extraordinary. Thanks for sharing these thoughts.
This is so encouraging! Thank you!
Lovely, Patti. I have a little thing I do each morning after I read my bible and devotions. I’ll call you soon and chat with you about it. I call it “My Morning coffee with Jesus”! It’s my very special time of day!
“But saying yes to Him is a choice even the most ordinary of us can make.” Exactly! When life is so very ordinary, He is ever faithful to give us opportunities to follow Him and shine for Him in big ways, isn’t He? Wonderful post!
Love this post, Patti! This line: “We were created for a glorious purpose – to love.” reminds me of one of my favorite songs right now. It’s called “Love Alone is Worth the Fight” by Switchfoot.
Thanks for this beautiful inspiration.