WEEK 15 – DAY 5

ORDINARY TO EXTRAORDINARY

At that moment he was filled with joy by the Ruach HaKodesh and said, “Father, Lord of heaven and earth, I thank you because you concealed these things from the sophisticated and educated, yet revealed them to ordinary people. Yes, Father, I thank you that it pleased you to do this. Luke 10:21 (CJB)

People often compare themselves to the Apostles and early disciples and lament that there is no way they could have Stephen’s faith, or preach like Peter, or survive persecution like Paul. They forget that Stephen was an ordinary man chosen to serve as a deacon to take care of widows until the Lord filled him with extraordinary faith to become the first Christian martyr. Peter was a simple fisherman who had never attended a rabbinical school, but Jesus entrusted him with feeding (instructing) His lambs, the people for which He gave His life. Paul had been the chief persecutor of the early church until Jesus appeared to him on the road to Damascus, then literally and figuratively removed the scales from his eyes, making him a bold proponent of the way of the cross. The Lord has purposely chosen to reveal Himself to ordinary people like us rather than those who are “wise in their own eyes” (Isaiah 5:21). Jesus is the “X Factor” that makes ordinary people extraordinary in His service!

Father, we surrender our ordinary lives to You with child-like faith, believing that You will do extraordinary things in and through us. Thank You that we do not have to be the brightest, richest, or best-looking people in order to be instruments in Your service. It is Jesus who makes us worthy to be called children of God. We praise the name of Jesus and lift Him high!