17 Jun Small Town, Great God by Melanie Stone
Have you ever felt like you are not good enough? Insignificant? Unqualified? God often chooses to use someone, somewhere to do something completely unexpected, even miraculous. This way, God gets the credit, without any question (I Corinthians 1:26-31).
I’m anticipating my big God to do great things in our small town of Batavia, Ohio! And, because of the examples in God’s Word, we have proof that He consistently uses what seems small and insignificant to accomplish His plans. Here are just a few examples:
- David was the small, younger brother who took down a defiant giant.
- Bethlehem was a small town that gave us a great Savior.
- A small child with a small lunch was used to feed a hungry multitude.
- Peter was a small businessman who started a great church movement.
As we look in God’s Word, we can learn what we value will either hinder or help God’s plan for us. Here are three areas where we can align ourselves with God’s Word.
Value WHO we are right now
Acts 4:13 “Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, they marveled. And they realized that they had been with Jesus.”
There are a lot of people who expect being overlooked because of their age, race, gender, social status, economic status, health status, a past record, a past lover, or a past choice. However, the men and women in the Bible who experienced greatness were just like us, and they put their faith in God instead of in themselves.
Value WHAT we have right now.
Zechariah 4:10 “Who has despised the day of small things?”
If I despise what God has put in my hand, I hinder God from working with what He has given me. What I have may seem small to me, but when Jesus observed the widow giving two small coins, He considered her as giving more than anyone. When we offer what we have to God, God will not only use it, He will anoint it with HIS Spirit. He will empower it with HIS strength, and He will multiply it with HIS power.
Value WHERE we are right now.
“And Nathaniel said to him, ‘Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, ‘Come and see.’” John 1:46
Jesus was from Nazareth, called a Nazarene. Nazareth was a remote, obscure village in the hills of Galilee. We can relate to that here in Batavia. In our small town, we have poverty issues, drug issues, sex trafficking issues, single parent home issues, mental illness issues, and all other kinds of issues. People of distinction aren’t known for coming from Batavia. Matters of great importance aren’t known for happening in our county.
The same was true of Jesus’ home town. It was not a compliment when Nathaniel asked, “Can anything good come out of [backwoods, hickville, redneck, dead-end] Nazareth?” So, if Jesus, our awesome Savior, came out of a small town, then God can bring something great out of our rural communities.
Once we’ve aligned our values with Christ’s, how can we position ourselves for greatness?
Here are some simple and helpful reminders. We…
- Can’t lose sight of the dream.
- Lean on God for the dream to come to pass.
- Trust God and endure hardship without complaining.
- Refuse to be complacent and comfortable.
- Press in and expect great things to happen!
Melanie Stone is co-pastor to her husband, Jerry Stone, the lead pastor at Freedom House Church in Batavia, Ohio (www.freedomhouse.church). Together the Stones founded Grow Churches, Inc, and offers free resources on www.growchurches.com. Melanie has a new book coming out this summer entitled “Open.”