Not Part of the Crowd

I heard a "radio preacher" say that God never uses the crowd. He was recalling the story of Gideon having too many soldiers. He said that those who were scared were sent home. Those who were unprepared were disqualified. Only those who were completely obedient and dependent upon the Lord remained. I can imagine Gideon's attack against the most ridiculous odds with the idea that "this is so crazy it just might work."

God has always used extraordinary people. They were such because they obeyed. They often were the least likely to be God's leaders. They are the fatherless old man who would be the beginning of the lineage of God's people, the shepherd boy who would become Israel's greatest king and the loud-mouthed fisherman who would lead God's Church. Nothing on the outside appears extraordinary. It was their faith, their obedience and God's hand upon them that made them great.

Surely, there are faithful people in the crowd. They obey but they do not take the lead. They are often scared and run from what the Lord asked of them. They are unprepared to go into the battle. They are sent home because they want to make sure that their faith stays within limits. They want to make sure that no inconvenient commitment is ever made.

Thus, we have those who stand and fight and those who claim that their faith is something personal. They think it is okay to keep their faith private. They never understood what it means to let their light shine before men. That scripture is very inconvenient.

But my calling is not to determine the usefulness of others. My calling is to be faithful so that I can be used. I am not called to stand in a crowd that runs from the battle. I am called to be prepared. I am called to do anything and everything asked of me by my Savior.

Have you ever asked yourself if you have been faithful? Do you know what the Lord has called you to do? Are you doing it?

Or have you become part of the crowd?