GOD CAN USE YOU IN WAYS HE CAN USE NO ONE ELSE
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“All of God’s people are ordinary people who have been made extraordinary by the purpose He has given them.” – Oswald Chambers –
Are we willing to give our all to God? Our trust, our reverence, our loyalty… our very lives? For this is what He wants from us. Until we give Him all that we are, we will never know all that He can do. God will take our ordinary and make it extraordinary. For in this way He is glorified.
God has given each of us a unique purpose for living. A holy, anointed purpose. A purpose He planned for us before we were born. God can use us in a way He can use no one else. We may not think we have much to offer Him. Yet if we give Him our best, He will do the rest. He will work through us in ways beyond what we ever dreamed possible.
A man named Philip enters the spotlight in the Book of Acts… an ordinary man made extraordinary by the divine purpose of God. Often known as Philip the Evangelist, he is different from the apostle Philip. He is one of the seven chosen by the apostles, filled with wisdom and the Spirit, to be the first deacons of the Church.
When persecution breaks out against the Christians in Jerusalem, Philip leaves for Samaria to spread the good news of the kingdom of God. The Lord’s hand of anointing is upon him as he heals and delivers the people. The Samaritans listen closely to Philip’s words as he shares with them about Jesus the Messiah, the Promised One. When many come to believe, he baptizes them into the kingdom.
One day, an angel brings word to Philip that he is to set out on the desert road to Gaza. There he meets upon a traveler, the treasurer to the queen of Cush (Ethiopia), journeying home from Jerusalem. As Philip walks beside his chariot, he hears the man reading the prophecy of the Messiah from the book of Isaiah.
“’Do you understand what you are reading?’ Philip asked.
‘How can I,’ he said, ‘unless someone explains it to me?’…
Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus.” – Acts 8:30-31, 35
Philip seizes the opportunity to share with this foreigner the good news of the Savior of the World. He is invited to join the Ethiopian in his chariot where he enlightens this man’s receptive mind and heart to the meaning of the Scriptures. Philip explains how Jesus is the Messiah who fulfilled all prophecies. The man comes to believe in Jesus.
When they happen upon some water, this new believer asks to be baptized. Philip baptizes him in the holy name of Jesus Christ. The Ethiopian travels on his way, rejoicing in his new life. The Spirit of the Lord suddenly takes Philip away to the town of Azotus (Ashdod). He continues to live out God’s purpose for his life as he evangelizes in all the coastal towns up to the port of Caesarea where he makes his home.
God can take the ordinary and change the course of history. Although an ordinary man, Philip had great impact for the kingdom of God. He followed the words of Jesus to take the gospel “to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). The Ethiopian convert brought the gospel to a new continent where the word of the Messiah spread. Philip’s life illustrates what God can do with one person dedicated to Him.
“God is looking for people through whom He can do the impossible – what a pity that we plan only the things that we can do by ourselves.” – A.W. Tozer
God desires that we cooperate with Him to carry out His purpose for our lives. If we make ourselves available to Him, He will use us in ways we never could have imagined. He is the God of the impossible. He will take our skills, our talents, our strengths, our experience and use them beyond what we could ever hope or expect.
Often, we place limits on what God can do in and through us by speculating on what is or is not possible. We make assumptions that negate His power in our lives. We see only the possible… what we can do in our own power. Yet God makes the impossible possible.
What seems impossible to us is an opportunity for God… an opportunity where He is glorified. With Him, all things are possible (Matthew 19:26). Our role is to trust Him and His purpose… look to His absolute power and sovereignty…. and lean into Him for the necessary courage.
The Lord is a great respecter of our freedom. He will not force His purpose on us. He longs for us to choose to follow Him. When we are dedicated to Him… when we are willing and available to Him… when we embrace His purpose for our lives… He steps in and works mightily. As we give our lives completely to God, He takes our ordinary and makes it extraordinary. For He is an extraordinary God.
