A Prayer for Extraordinary Impact
By Lysa Terkeurst
“After Ehud came Shamgar son of Anath, who struck down six hundred Philistines with an oxgoad. He too saved Israel.” Judges 3:31 (NIV)
I am a woman who wants to make a difference for Christ in the world. I want my life and legacy to count for something with eternal significance. I want to stand before God one day knowing I fulfilled the purposes He had for me. But there’s always this nagging sense inside of me that the world’s problems are too big, and I’m too small. Can you relate? That’s why I’m so fascinated with Shamgar.
Tucked into this one verse, we see three things Shamgar did that resulted in his life having extraordinary impact:
1. He offered God his willingness.
2. He used what God had given him.
3. He stayed true to who he was.
And in doing those three things, it was enough. God used him to save the nation of Israel.
Oh, how Shamgar’s story stirs my soul. He was an ordinary person, in an ordinary place, doing an ordinary job. The thing that made him extraordinary wasn’t anything external. It was his internal drive to do the right thing and be obedient to God, right where he was. His job was to be obedient to God. God’s job was everything else. The same is possible for us. If we are obedient to God in the midst of our ordinary lives, extraordinary impact is always possible.
I love that God’s hand is never limited by what we have in ours. Do you long to live a life that has extraordinary impact? I pray you will grab hold of the encouragement found in Shamgar’s story.
Offer God your willingness. Even if you feel small … even if you feel unlikely … even if everything in you is screaming you’re not someone who can be used by God … simply offer Him your willingness.
Use what God has given you. What’s in your hand, sweet friend? What gift, what talent, what ability? Whatever it is, take time to sharpen it. And choose to believe God can use it when you humbly offer it up to Him.
Stay true to who you are. God didn’t ask Shamgar to be anyone other than a farmer. He’s not asking you to be anyone other than who He designed you to be, either. You do you, and then watch with humble amazement as God uses your willing, obedient, ordinary life to accomplish extraordinary things in His name.
Lord, thank You for reminding me that You can use anyone and everyone. I willingly offer You all that I am and all that I have — choosing to believe that who I am is enough to be used by You. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Editor’s Note: Content taken from the Encouragement for Today devotional, A Life with Extraordinary Impact, written by Lysa Terkeurst. You can read that piece in full here. All rights reserved.
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