All together

Have you noticed the lives of the prophets or the apostles -- Jeremiah, Amos, Peter, John? All were ordinary people living lives outside of the box. You may be in a position where you feel unimportant - wondering how you can make a difference in a world of billions?Don't despise the day of small things as you are a vital part of God's plan! (Zechariah 4:10)

"His lord said unto him, 'Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.'" Matthew 25:21

You may have heard the story of a heavy bronze bell that had sunk into a river in China. The efforts of different engineers to raise it had been in vain. A man coming up to them asking, "If I raise the bell, may I have it for my church?" The reply was "Yes, since we have to leave it - it is yours."

He then had his helpers gather a huge number of bamboo rods - hollow, light, and practically unsinkable. Taken down by divers, they were fastened, one by one, to the bell. After many had been fastened, the bell began to move, and when the last one had been added, the buoyancy of the rods was so great, the gigantic bronze bell was brought to the surface.

Some thought bamboo rods were too small and insignificant to move a huge bell, but enough of them working together made a difference. You may think you are irrelevant in the big scheme of things, but God wants you to share the gifts He has given you. If we fail to exercise our unique gifts, we not only fail God, but we fail the body. When joined together with other believers in Him -- we will make a difference!

"And the eye cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of thee: nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you. Nay, much more those members of the body, which seem to be more feeble, are necessary." 1 Corinthians 12:21-22

Our lives can make a difference! The fact is that God can do a lot with a little. God is looking for that one who can make his or her mark. Will you be that one person?

When God chooses to do His work, He doesn't just pick members from society's elite. He can use the nobility of the royal or the wisdom of the scholars, but they are in the minority. So who are the majority that God uses?

Have you ever tried to drink water from a fire hydrant? Ever thought of dishing up a whale for dinner? I know what you're thinking: "Too much." That's often what comes to mind when we think of Jesus' words: "Make disciples of all the nations" (Matthew 28:19). At last count, the world population had topped six billion. It makes you wonder how you could ever do enough to spread the gospel.

If you want to make sure that your plants will spread out or climb arbors or sprout buds, you've got to read those little pieces of plastic in the dirt next to them. If you don't follow the pickets, your greens could shrivel and wither and brown. In the same way, every single person in your home and every single person you meet has his or her own picket of instructions-specific things that promote the best growth.

Growing together
Pastor Mike

The World's First Professional

A doctor, an engineer, a rabbi and a lawyer were debating who was the world's first professional.
The doctor said, "It must have been a doctor. Who else could have helped with the world's first surgery of taking a rib from Adam to create Eve, the first woman?"

"No," said the rabbi. ''It must have been a rabbi, since the Lord needed someone to help preach his message to Adam and the world."

"Wait," said the engineer, "The world was created in six days from nothing. Do you know what a master engineering feat that must have been to create the whole world into an organized, civilized place from utter chaos?"

"Yes, but who created the chaos?" asked the lawyer...