Gossiping, Guilt and Blame

Good morning, it is Monday, August 9, 2021.

Have you ever struggled with wondering how God can use you? Have you ever felt irrelevant or unworthy? Have there been times in your life when you seriously doubted your ability to do anything for God’s cause?

I want to remind you of something. Open the pages of your Bible and read about the people mentioned there. By all outward appearances they were not qualified to do anything good, but God used them in a mighty way.

Genesis chapters 25-27 tells the story of Isaac and Rebekah and their twin boys Esau and Jacob. Jacob was a cheater and a liar.

John 18 tells the story of Jesus’ betrayal. Because Peter drew his sword to defend Jesus it is said that he had a temper.

2 Samuel 11 tells the story of King David. Not only did David have an affair with Bathsheba, but he arranged to have her husband killed when he realized he had gotten her pregnant!

Genesis 9 tells the story of after the flood. We are told Noah became a man of the soil and planted a vineyard. Verse 21 say he drank of the wine and became drunk.

Jonah was asked by God to go to Nineveh and preach to the people there, but he ran from God. He also had issues of prejudice.

Paul, before his conversion when he was still the man named Saul, hunted and persecuted Christians.

Numbers 12 talks about Miriam and Aaron and how they were speaking against, or gossiping, about Moses.

Isaiah had the problem of guilt.

Job suffered greatly with boils, losing his children and his livestock.

Martha was a worrier.

Thomas was a doubter.

Sara was impatient.

Elijah was moody and depressed.

Mary Magdalene, before Jesus got ahold of her, was a prostitute!

Moses had a stutter and felt terribly inadequate, not to mention he was a murderer and an outlaw.

Zacchaeus was short and hated by most people.

Abraham was old

Eve could not control her appetite and Adam was a blame shifter

Lot had a habit of keeping bad company.

Hosea struggled with a wife that was unfaithful.

Gideon was insecure and came from weakest tribe.

Samson, maybe the strongest man to ever live, had a wife that was terribly disloyal.

Isaac was a daydreamer.

The Samaritan women was divorced, more than once.

The disciples fell asleep while praying.

Peter denied Christ, three times!

Naomi was a widow.

Ruth was a pagan.

Peter acted before thinking.

Lazarus was dead!

My point is this should encourage you!

As you look at these Bible “Heroes” we see humanness. We see faults. We see sin. We see disobedience and attitude, and yet God reached down from heaven and used these people in mighty ways.

“But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God.” 1 Corinthians 1:27-29 ESV

Friends He can and will use you!!

I read this online a couple of weeks ago “God does not call the qualified, He qualifies the called.”

How many times have you heard, “If God led you to it, He can lead you through it.”

Or, “With God, ALL things are possible!”

Matthew 19:26 ESV “But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

Amen!