Most of us are pretty ordinary when it comes to giftedness, talent, charisma, etc. The Apostle Paul made that observation for the Corinthian Christians by reminding them of their ignoble position in this world when God called them to faith: Most were of average IQ with humble origins — and minimal influence among their peers (I Corinthians 1:26-29).
Abraham Lincoln made this observation: “Common looking people are the best in the world: that is the reason the Lord makes so many of them.”
Of course, our station in life is of the Lord; there is only one cornerstone: Jesus; the rest of us are simply called to be just another brick in the wall (that’s actually good news: it means we are not indispensable; most of life doesn’t depend on us but on our Creator). As someone has wisely put it: “We’re important, but not essential; valuable, but not indispensable. We have a part in the play, but we are not the main act. A song to sing, but we are not the featured voice. God is.”
For these reasons, I have said for years that anyone can be a real, honest-to-goodness, sincere follower of Christ! And therein lies the key to impacting the people God brings our way: Our primary assignment is to just live what we say! As Terry Scott Taylor (singer/songwriter for Daniel Amos) sang years ago: “Words have their place but live what you say!” Folks, that’s something we all can do!
In fact, I was deeply affected recently by some correspondence I received from Terry. He is an acquaintance of mine who has been a tremendous blessing to me over the years through his lyrics and music — both as a solo artist and through his three different bands: Daniel Amos, The Swirling Eddies, and The Lost Dogs. I have used his “stuff” in sermon illustrations, school curriculum, and personal devotions for over 37 years! Because of the tremendous blessing he’s been to me I wanted to send him a small financial gift. I asked him how I could get it to him — and he wrote back, stating that he was doing OK financially and urged me to gift someone else in need with that money!
Now folks, think about that: He could have accepted that money and spent it on whatever, but he practiced what he’s been singing about for years: Live what you say! So many of Terry’s songs are about shysters, hucksters, lying con men out to fleece God’s sheep — and here was an awesome example of his personal integrity and sincere faith. Man, did that ever bless me!
This is what I’m talking about: Anybody can (and we all must) be a true, genuine, sincere follower of the Master. Remember: For the Christian, success is not measured by what we accomplish but by our faithfulness to God’s Word.
