"And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and preaching the gospel of the kingdom and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people."
Matthew 4:23
As Jesus began His ministry, He didn't start by going to schools and choosing scholars or to fine government buildings and asking for important dignitaries.
Instead, He walked the dusty shores of Galilee, calling for fishermen like Peter, Andrew, James and John. He healed a leper who dared to approach Him. He welcomed a paralytic who was lowered through a hole in the roof so he could see Jesus. He even invited Matthew, a despised tax collector, to be His disciple.
These weren't just random encounters -- they were intentional invitations to the rejected and forgotten, to the invisible laborers supporting their families in Galilee.
It appears Jesus chose ordinary people to build His kingdom. People who were not well-known and not applauded by the people around them.
Ever feel like you didn't belong to the "important group"? Like you were so ordinary no one even noticed you? That you were practically invisible? No one expected you to have lunch with the "cool kids" at their table? No one saved you a seat. You just sort of "blended in."
Does it seem to you that these were the kind of people Jesus specifically wanted to use to build His kingdom? He sought these people out. It seems to me that that was who He was searching for. And I am forever grateful!
Each encounter shows us that Jesus isn't deterred by our weaknesses. He's drawn to them. He doesn't wait for us to be accomplished and confident -- He steps into our pain, heals and restores and then sends us forward with purpose and in His power.
In our world where status so often dictates influence, Jesus flipped the model. The broken and troubled became His messengers. (Actually, who better?)
Do you think your pain and past disqualifies you from serving Him? Maybe you should think again!
Ministry, to Jesus, does not begin with perfection -- it begins with surrender. When we bring our imperfections to Him, He greet us with healing and direction. If he could use lepers, paralytics, simple fishermen, and tax collectors - He can use us!
And remember, He still walks into the lives of outcasts today, only now, He does it through us! It is our body He is using for His ministry!
Look around you. Ask God to open your eyes - Who is invisible to the world? Who is weak and ordinary? Search for them as Jesus did and then...show them Jesus!
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