My name is Abraham, I was no one special, but God changed that. I was a man of seventy five years. My Father died at age 205 when we lived in Haran, from that point on, God began to lead me. I did nothing but follow His commands and believe in His promises to me. My wife Sarah (At that time, her name was Sarai), my brother's son Lot and I traveled to many places. Everything seemed to be going good as long as I believed in God and knew that as long as I trusted in His word, He would be glorified through my blessings. God had led us to riches and land. God had continually told me that I would be the father of a great line of descendents, and to count the descendents would be to count the dust of the earth! For many years I had know that my wife was barren and could not have children, so the thought of me having descendents seemed ridiculous. But as always, I made myself available to the Lord and trusted in his word. Sure enough, when I was more than 100 years of age and my wife more than 90 years old, we had a son! The child's name was Isaac for that is the name that God chose for him.

God has been so good to me and my family all because of our faith in His promises. At my old age, I've found nothing that God can not do. God has made a covenant with me and all of my descendents. That covenant was that He would be my God and the God of my descendents and that we would have everlasting possession of the whole land of Canaan! All of these blessing are due to my faith in Gods promises to me. Never doubt God's plans for you, no matter how ridiculous they may seem, they will happen and He will be glorified as long as you have faith.

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Noah was called a righteous man, blameless, one who walked with God. (Gen 6:8-9) That's why God called him out from all the others to build an ark. Noah responded by doing all that God commanded (Gen 6:22).
Noah built the ark, gathered the pairs of animals and the food, loaded the ark, and did all God had asked. He followed through on God's plan, and that's what really made him a great man in our eyes today. God called, Noah answered with an affirmative "Yes".
But Noah was really not so different from you and I, except for perhaps his undying trust in God and willingness to obey even if the request seemed foolish. A little later in the story, after the flood had passed, we see that Noah planted a vineyard. He enjoyed working the soil, and celebrated his good harvest by making some wine. Noah got himself drunk, and was lying naked inside his tent when one of his sons came by. You can read the rest of the story. (Genesis 9:20-23) The point is, Noah was a normal man who had his own set of problems and quirks. He was not some perfect specimen of the human race, but simply an ordinary man who trusted his God and obeyed without question.
Have you ever felt that God was calling you to do something that you weren't able to handle? Maybe you feel like you should tell more people about the Bible but don't because you feel like you have too much wrong in your own life to be an influence. Imagine how Mary, the mother of Jesus, must have felt when the angel told her she would be the mother of God.

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Mary was a poor girl. On a social ranking scale, she would have been at the bottom. Jewish culture was patriarchal. Women had very little influence or rights. It was the exception rather than the rule for women to own land or enter into contracts. Typical thinking was that a girl belonged to her father and subsequently her husband once she was married. Worse still, Mary came from a poor family. Politically speaking her family held no influence. How could such an unimportant, forgettable member of society hope to serve God and affect the lives of so many millions of people through so many generations?

That is one of the qualities of God that makes Him so special. We don't matter. He can use any one of us, no matter our background, social status or anything else we can think of, to do His will. It's what we call the grace of God.

Mary is a wonderful example of how His grace works. She was presented with an opportunity to do His will. She recognized the inherent difficulties. She knew questions about the child's father and her chastity would arise and she knew she could be killed for being pregnant and unmarried. Yet, she submitted to God's will with unexpected courage. She recognized that God is in control and allowed Him to use her. Think how many lives have changed because Mary heeded God's will for her.

How many lives might you change this week if you hear God's will for you, recognize your flaws and allow Him to use you anyway? Be full of God's grace.

God does not expect you to achieve some great status before He will call you to do His work. He wants to use you just as you are, just where you are right now. It is in using ordinary men and women to do extraordinary things that truly gives all the glory to God. If He used really "great" men and women, guess who would get all the credit. Let God use you now, just as you are, and then let God receive all the glory for what He has done through you.

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Be After God's Own Heart"

King David is recorded in the scriptures as "a man after God's own heart". God anointed David to be King of Israel and was with him, destroying all enemies and rivals against him and Israel. God loved David and made a covenant with him for a lasting dynasty. David was truly untouchable and unbeatable until he became unworthy. David made a bad choice and broke God's laws by committing adultery, and then he tried to cover it up and committed murder. With his admittance of guilt and repentance, God forgave him and as he always has; kept his promise. David's son, Solomon, became the next King of Israel. Thanks be to God for his grace and mercy for Our Lord and Savior, "Christ Jesus- The Everlasting King for Eternity"...is David's descendant as well, proving to us that the promise still stands.

Before David died he told Solomon, "Learn to know the God of your ancestors intimately. Worship and serve him with your whole heart and a willing mind. For the Lord sees every heart and knows every plan and thought. If you seek him, you will find him. But if you forsake him, he will reject you forever. So take this seriously.... Be strong and courageous, and do the work. Don't be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord God, my God, is with you. He will not fail you or forsake you". 1 Chronicles 28:9-10a, 20

David's words are for all of us to hear and to take seriously. His life is recorded along with the problems he faced during his life before and during his reign as King of Israel. He wrote many songs and prayers to God that are recorded in 2 Samuel, 1 Chronicles, and Psalms. We can read these pleas and praises and relate them to our own lives. David proves that no matter what we have done, with repentance God will accept us and let us start over being the examples of his love to all people. Through Christ Jesus we are made worthy to be in God's presence and have Eternal Life with him in heaven.

Like David...shouldn't we as followers of Christ "Be after God's own heart", doing his work by sharing his promise of Eternal Life with all people.

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I am going to make a bold statement: We have all felt unworthy, incapable, inept, or even incompetent at some point in our lives. I know that I have, and in talking to people I've found that I'm not alone. This is especially true when we're asked to do something for the church. Whether it is to serve on a committee, participate in a cell group, or become involved with mission work, we all have issues that keep us from feeling like we can do anything for God. Fortunately for us, God used dozens of people just like us throughout scripture, and those people can inspire us - even though they were pretty messed up, too.

Moses is the perfect example. Abandoned as a baby and having killed someone, he was not the type of person everyone would look to for inspiration. However, he had a heart that was willing to serve God and, despite his many objections, finally came to be used in a tremendous way in biblical history. Used to free the Israelites from captivity and lead them to the land God had promised for them, Moses' life shows us that even when we are from humble beginnings, have done horrible things, or have personal problems that hold us back, God is able to use us for magnificent things.

This promise is made for us in the New Testament, long after Moses' death. In 2 Corinthians 12:9, Paul mentions his own personal problems, and then - thankfully - tells us what God has assured him of: "My grace is enough for you. When you are weak, my power is made perfect in you." Paul goes on to say that he will gladly boast about his own weaknesses, because then - and only then - can he truly glory in God's power and become completely reliant on Him - not on himself.

The same is true for us. Here's another bold statement: God can use all of us - regardless of where we've been, what we've done, or what we're dealing with. He can use us, and He will - if we allow ourselves to be used.

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