Ephesians 2:10, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
When David first arrived at King Saul’s palace he was a simple, unknown shepherd boy. But he had an impressive rèsumè!
God, in essence, said, ‘I saw you kill the bear and the lion; I was watching your courage, leadership, fighting ability, and strength when you didn’t even realize I had my eye on you.‘
Solomon wrote, ‘A man’s gift makes room for him and brings him before great men.‘ (Proverbs 18:16).
David’s ‘gift’ may have only been the ability to accurately through a slingshot, but it opened the door to his future as Israel’s king!
So even though what you’ve got doesn’t seem like much, give it to God and watch what He can do with it!
You say, ‘But I’m not formally trained.‘
All God requires is that you show up, say yes, and make yourself available! When you give God what you’ve got, He gives you what He’s got; and that alone makes your odds unbeatable!
‘But I don’t have the right credentials,‘ you say.
So what?
Benjamin Franklin had less than two years of formal schooling yet at 25 he founded America’s first library, at 31 he started its first fire department, at 36 he designed a heating stove that’s still in use today, at 40 he harnessed the power of electricity, at 45 he founded the nation’s first university, and at 79 he invented bifocals! He was an economist, philosopher, diplomat, inventor, educator, publisher, and linguist who spoke and wrote in five languages.
Chances are, you already have more education than he had when he was your age, and yet look at all he was able to accomplish!
People of God, regardless of where you come from,
your family structure,
gender,
ethnicity,
age,
education,
employment,
handicaps,
or even failures,
you still have enough to accomplish great things!
Ephesians 2:10, “For we are His workmanship [His masterwork, a work of art], created in Christ Jesus [reborn from above – spiritually transformed, renewed, READY TO BE USED] for good works, which God prepared [for us] beforehand [taking paths which He set] so that we would walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us].”
If we are literal we are His poema where we get our English word pome from.
Like Moses, David was also a shepherd, but David was also just a boy! But that same little boy would defeat Goliath and he would eventually become king!
So, don’t you dare let anyone limit you because of your age! Be it a youngster or a senior!
Joash was king at 7!
2 Chronicles 24:1, “Joash was seven years old when he became king; he was king for forty years in Jerusalem…”
And the priest Aaron died at 123 Numbers 33:39, “.
Remember the Word of God Declares God Can Use You and Bless You At ANY Age!
The Bible Reads: 1 Timothy 4:12
Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, and in purity.
We also need to use our young people in God’s service!
They can do more than sing in the choir. We need to train them how to handle the security of the building;
teach them how to teach;
how to clean the House of God;
how to play an instrument;
how the sound equipment functions;
You can even use them to do devotionals.
Don’t despise their youth!
If they can learn trigonometry, they can learn theology!
Psalm 92:14
“They shall still bear fruit in old age;
They shall be fresh and flourishing,”.
Do not cast our seniors aside either!
Their wisdom;
experience;
knowledge;
understanding; and guidance are all valuable to every generation!
Don’t let them get to 65 and then try to retire them from the Lord’s Service!
If God’s not putting time constraints on people, why should we?
God Will Us at Any Age if we are willing...
Like Joseph, Esther was a slave before God used her to save her people from being massacred! Women, who you were can’t stop who you’re destined to become!
Eve had a hunger that cost her a garden;
Potiphar’s wife had an unlawful sexual appetite;
Lot lost his mate when she couldn’t get her eyes off the rear-view mirror;
Delilah should’ve left the hairstyles to the professionals;
Sapphira needed a financial consultant;
Jezebel should’ve remained single;
Tamar never recovered from her brother’s rape;
and Michal didn’t value the worth of her husband’s worship!
These women didn’t get to redeem themselves, but you can!
Take your past to the cemetery and start living life to the full! It’s time to fulfill your purpose!
Esther 4:14, “For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?”
You are still here on purpose, for a purpose, now fulfill it! God Wants to Use You!
Who did God choose to be the mother of Jesus?
A famous actress?
A celebrity?
A great athlete?
A famous politician?
Nope, the mother of Jesus (Mary) was a peasant girl!
Please understand greatness is not attached to Wealth, it’s attached to Willingness!
Luke 1:38 Then Mary said, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.
God is not looking for great achievements, just availability! Are you willing to let God use you?
Isaiah 6:8, “Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying:
“Whom shall I send, And who will go for Us?”
Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.”
Is that your declaration too? Or are you like Saul hiding behind stuff?
1 Samuel 10:22, “Therefore they inquired of the LORD further, “Has the man come here yet?” And the LORD answered, “There he is, hidden among the equipment.”
Is that where you are today, hiding?
When God needs your
gifts,
talents,
skill-set,
know-how,
ability, and
availability,
are you hiding in the baggage?
Hiding in the baggage of your past; failures; bad choices; and the like?
Well, today is your day to come out of hiding and leave the baggage in the past!
Matthew was one of the 12 disciples and wrote one of the Gospels that told about the life of Jesus. But before Jesus asked Matthew to join Him, he was a tax collector!
Don’t undervalue what you do from day to day, God is still watching, and He’ll call you and use you even while you’re doing your little day-to-day (seemingly unnoticed) job!
Nothing you do is irrelevant, no matter how little!
Matthew 25:23
“His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’.”
Furthermore, there are some jobs that people hate, just like that of the tax collector. Dog walkers, they stop every few minutes so dogs can poop and they can clean it up, who wants to do that?
Janitors and sanitation workers have to clean up and pick up some gross stuff, who wants to do that? But when you’re faithful to do even menial, not-so-glamorous jobs, God blesses you even in that.
Never think that God is checking your employment status to bless you or to use you.
God has proven time and again that He can use anybody, anywhere! And yes, that includes you and me!
Luke traveled with Paul giving him a companion to journey with and Luke would also write one of the four Gospels. But Luke was a simple physician! But what God uses your hands to heal in the natural, can’t compare to what He’s going to use your hands to heal in the spiritual!
You see, Paul was known for killing folks in the natural, but that wouldn’t compare to the resurrection power he would possess in the spiritual!
Acts 20:9-11
The Bible says, “…Paul talked on, way past midnight…A young man named Eutychus was sitting in an open window. As Paul went on and on, Eutychus fell sound asleep and toppled out the third-story window. When they picked him up, he was dead. Paul went down, stretched himself on him, and hugged him hard.
“No more crying,” he said. “There’s life in him yet.”…Paul going one way, the congregation another, leading the boy off alive…”
Whether your hands cut people in the prison yard; sold drugs in the backyard; or were rebellious in the schoolyard, God can still clean those hands and use them for His work and His glory!
God doesn’t hold you to your past, so release yourself too!
Your hands are the hands God will use to transform this world.
Many of the disciples were just common fishermen and would go on to do God’s work. Peter is the best example as he would be an Apostle, a leader of the early church and he would write two letters in the Bible!
“…Peter stood up and…spoke out with bold urgency…That day about three thousand took him at his word, were baptized, and were signed up. They committed themselves to the teaching of the apostles, the life together, the common meal, and the prayers. Everyone around was in awe—all those wonders and signs were done through the apostles!… Every day their number grew as God added those who were saved.” (Acts 2).
Not bad for a former fisherman!
Believe it or not, Great Leaders were once Great Laity!
So, don’t count your fisherman status as unworthy, there’s a valuable Fisher of Men in you yet to be revealed!
Remember this, some of God’s greatest preachers deliver messages every week, from the pew and not the pulpit!
The very next time you doubt whether you have enough to do a work for God or dare to under-estimate yourself, your worth, and your value, just remember this:
Jacob was a Master of Deception;
Gideon was a Self-Doubter;
David was a Premeditated Sinner;
Solomon was an Unwise Lover;
Paul Was an Adversary;
Elijah was Suicidal;
Noah was Drunk;
Abraham was Old;
Jeremiah was Young;
Timothy had Ulcers;
Job Went Bankrupt With Boils;
The Disciples Fell Asleep During Intercession;
Isaiah Preached Naked;
Leah wasn’t exactly a Beauty Queen;
Naomi Lost All the Men in Her Life;
John the Baptist was Beheaded at a Birthday Party;
The Samaritan Woman Had Too Many of Other Men;
Saul was Tall;
Zacchaeus was small;
Samson was a Womanizer;
Rahab was a Prostitute;
Jonah was a Prejudiced Prophet;
and Lazarus was Dead and yet God used each of them greatly!
So why can’t He use even you?!
Move on from old history. Most of us have past experiences that are hard to put behind us. Divorce, bankruptcy, health issues, abuse, rebellion, bad choices, destructive behavior—don’t let the past define you. If you need to forgive or be forgiven, take care of that. If you need a godly counselor to help, seek help—then claim the promise of Jesus: “Behold, I make all things new” (Revelation 21:5) and move on. Everything has become new—including the wineskins of your heart, ready to be filled with a fresh, healing anointing of the Holy Spirit.
Ray Bently
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