Devotional—Ordinary Faithfulness

What next? I often feel overwhelmed when I hear that I need to go out and be missional. In my mind, I reason that we are but a small church, and we lack the right resources. We feel inadequate.

However, God doesn’t measure success by size or grand gestures. Jesus began with just twelve disciples, and his ministry, though small, changed the world.

In God’s kingdom, faithfulness matters more than size or prominence. Just like how our lungs, though unseen, are essential to life, the hidden or small parts of our lives can have the greatest impact.

God often uses what the world considers insignificant. Jesus didn’t need a large following to make a difference — he needed faithful, ordinary people. God’s power is still made perfect in our weakness today. The church’s greatest offering isn’t in its famous leaders or large buildings but in everyday believers committed to following Jesus.

From one ancestor [God] made all peoples to inhabit the whole earth, and he allotted the times of their existence and the boundaries of the places where they would live. Acts 17:26

God created each of us and placed us in specific times and places for his purposes. Nothing about your life is an accident. Your talents, no matter how small, are part of God’s plan to reach others. Dallas Willard wrote, “The well-kept secret of the ‘ordinary’ is that it is made to be a receptacle of the divine, a place where the life of God flows.”

If Jesus could feed thousands with a few loaves and fish, he can do great things with whatever you offer him. God loves our availability over our abilities. He doesn’t need the most talented — he’s looking for those willing to serve faithfully.

Prayer: Father, thank you for reminding me that my worth isn’t tied to how big my actions seem. Help me trust that you’ve placed me where I’m needed. Use my ordinary life for your extraordinary purposes. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.

By Bermie Dizon, Elder
Glendora, CA, US