In our comparison-saturated world , we are tempted multiple times a day to believe that unpolished , unfiltered , regular old us is far from enough . But God loves ( and I do mean loves ) to use the most unlikely people to do extraordinary things .
We see this with so many people God chose to use throughout Scripture . They were flawed , ordinary folks who were honest about who they were . God chose , loved , and used these people despite their flaws because they were willing to depend on Him .
Let ’ s look at some examples of people God used in powerful ways . As He did for them , He invites us to be honest about our lack and to make the hard choice to move forward — not because of who we are and all we can do , but because of who He is .
Gideon
When the Israelites cried out to God for save them from their enemy , the Midianites , God chose an unlikely man named Gideon to be their deliverer . Gideon was doing ordinary things on an ordinary day when the Lord appeared to him .
Gideon was beating out wheat in the winepress to hide it from the Midianites . And the angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him , “ The Lord is with you , O mighty man of valor ” ... And he said to him , “ Please , Lord , how can I save Israel ? Behold , my clan is the weakest in Manasseh , and I am the least in my father ’ s house .” And the Lord said to him ,
“ But I will be with you , and you shall strike the Midianites as one man .” Judges 6:11-16
When Gideon confessed , “ Not me ! I am the weakest !”, it ’ s as if God said , “ Great ! My favorite kind !” In response to his honest confession , God showed Gideon who he could be because of the Lord ’ s power — a “ mighty man of valor .”
God never does anything without a reason . God patiently allowed Gideon to process what was happening to him so Gideon would trust that this was God ’ s plan . And just as God said he would , Gideon went on to conquer the Midianites in extraordinary ways . Gideon ’ s weakness didn ’ t disqualify him from what God wanted to do in and through him .
The Widow of Zarephath
The widow of Zarephath was the very definition of being tired of trying . The Lord told the prophet Elijah to find her after a terrible drought , promising that she would feed him . But when Elijah found her , she was out of food , and resigned to the fact that she and her son would soon die . ( 1 Kings 17:12 NIV )
Though it would ’ ve been custom for the widow to provide Elijah with whatever she could , her total desperation led her to confess the reality in which she found herself . Even still , Elijah asked her to bake him bread — and the woman had to risk the little she had to feed Elijah first . This was the
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