FBC Daily Devotional – January 28, 2021

Another good Thursday to you. Here we are on the downside of another week

Actually the downside of a month, isn't it? We're getting close to the end of January and I'm frankly looking forward to that.

I I Appreciate seeing the winter months fade into the past not that I'm in a hurry for time to go by but You know what?

I mean, you know how I feel I think if If you to struggle with the cold and you don't like shoveling snow and all the rest of that stuff that brings that winter brings

With it Nevertheless, I got to tell you this though as much as I might be inclined to complain about the cold and the snow

Occasionally my wife and I'll go out for a walk in this cold weather. We go down by a river

We had that Riverwalk near in a park near us and go walk for a couple of miles and it's really quite refreshing Even though the cold stings the cheeks

They have to appreciate that. I'd rather much rather walk outside even in the bitter cold

Than to walk on a treadmill, but that's just me well

You remember those? class officers that You had in high school.

Maybe if you went to a public high school I did And you know, we had to vote, you know The student body voted for the student student body president and vice president and these different officers and so forth and There was always this campaigning between a few different a few different kids

You notice who never got elected The average run -of -the -mill kid that nobody paid attention to who gets elected

It's it's the one that is deemed most popular. It's most charismatic or whatever

Yeah, the the ordinary common Kid who just goes to school does his schoolwork.

It's his homework does his grades turns in his homework and all that kind of stuff Yeah, he's not picked to be the student body president.

It's mr. Popular the most likely to whatever or the miss whatever You know you get you get my point

But when you read the list of names in Matthew chapter 10, it's in our reading for today

You read a list of a dozen names of men that were just really common men no one outside of their

Immediate family their immediate circle of acquaintances would have known them or really paid them any attention

I suppose the only exception to that might have been Matthew the tax collector You know people in his town would have known

Matthew the tax collector and they wouldn't have been too happy with him because of his occupation of taking their taxes

But the rest of them are you know, they're just common people, you know fishermen, you know

So forth that nothing outstanding nothing exceptional about them

How do we pick? Leaders people we want on our team we opt for those that are the popular ones the ones that are the most powerful or Intelligent or talented the ones that we think that we think will get the job done

They'll do the thing that we want, you know the thing to be done Isn't it interesting how the

Lord just takes these common? ordinary men and He works with them.

He teaches them. He molds them. He shapes them over the period of his earthly ministry until When he's about to ascend into heaven 11 of these 12

Judas Iscariot accepted 11 of these 12 are delegated the responsibility of going into all the world and And proclaiming that Jesus is

Lord and Savior That's an incredible Incredible thing to think about common ordinary men

I'm thankful that our God of grace chooses and uses common ordinary everyday people sinners all uses us

But he but he our Lord makes us useful useful and effective in his service

If you feel inadequate sometimes you feel yeah, like who am

I, you know, what am I? well, if God in his grace has saved you and made you his child then

Common ordinary everyday person or not You can be one whom

God chooses to use in your sphere of influence in your vocation whether it's a homemaker a teacher a homeschool teacher a teacher in the classroom an office worker a factory worker a medical professional doesn't matter doesn't matter what your occupation how esteemed in this world or not

God in his grace has chosen you and he will equip you and Use you to accomplish his purpose for your life

We'll be grateful for that amazing grace of our wonderful God Thank you father that you take ordinary people like we are ordinary people like Peter and James and Andrew and John and these other men who

Are really kind of obscure people and yet you have turned the world upside down through them

Thank you for your grace Thank you for being a for taking us and using us as we are

Molding us and shaping us into what you want us to be for your honor and glory Use us to that end we pray in Jesus name and for his sake.

Amen All right, well have a good rest of your Thursday and I trust