“The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body – whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free – and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.” — 1 CORINTHIANS 12:12-13

God not only has plans for this world, but He has plans in this world. Every new day brings its outworking of the purposes of God, but how are they accomplished? The remarkable answer is that His purposes are primarily accomplished through people, and what is more, through very ordinary people.

When I was a young Christian, I believed that there were certain special people God liked to use and through whom He liked to work. They were those people whose lives were characterized by a freshness and vitality that drew others to Christ. The best someone like me could contribute would be praying for them, listening to them, encouraging and supporting them, but I could not expect the same God to work through me. I had wrongly concluded that the plans of God bypassed the ordinary person. He or she had to keep the basic rules, but other than that, was left on the sidelines to observe and admire.

Oswald Chambers, in his book, “My Utmost for His Highest”, writes, “A gilt-edged saint is no good, he is abnormal, unfit for daily life, and altogether unlike God. We are here as men and women, not as half-fledged angels, to do the work of the world, and to do it with an infinitely greater power to stand the turmoil because we have been born from above.” The truth is that the ordinary person is intended by Jesus Christ to be the very vehicle of His working, for He has chosen that the particular means of expressing Himself to people is through people. God does not have special favourites. He is willing to work through any person who is willing to let Him.

Although it is true that God’s plans are accomplished through people, that statement in itself is inadequate concerning His strategy in the world. A more accurate statement would be to say that His plan is “Christ”. God has no plans outside of Jesus Christ, and we share in the outworking of those plans by being “in Christ”. It is our union with Him which qualifies us for participation in His strategy.

PRAYER: Dear Lord, I am humbled to think that You would want to use me for your work in this world. I know that I have nothing more to offer than my ordinary self, but that it is your work in me and through me that contributes to your purpose in this world. Thank You for every opportunity of serving You.

TO REFLECT UPON: How am I allowing God to use me? What can I do to make myself more available to God and His purposes?