Most of us are normal ordinary people. We come from ordinary families and spend our time with similar people. There will be no statues made of us or books written about us. The majority of people in the world will not know of us. That does not though lessen us as people or make us inferior to those who are famous.
These days though, for some reason, it’s not unusual for people to want to be famous. We can observe this from some who may achieve fame through a reality TV programme. Sometimes sadly some base their self-worth on their fame. There are others who might gauge their importance on the number of social media followers they have. They are not content to be ordinary people.
I have recently been reading a biography of Charles Spurgeon, the famous 19th century preacher. One of the lessons from Spurgeon’s life is the important role three ordinary people played in his conversion and early part of his Christian experience.
Spurgeon became a Christian in January 1850. Due to the bad weather on that day he was unable to reach the church he had intended to attend but instead went to a small chapel. No-one knows who the preacher was that Sunday. Spurgeon himself in later years, when recalling that day, was not very complimentary about the preacher’s style of speaking. However God used this unknown person to make Himself known to Spurgeon. An ordinary person had faithfully preached God’s word and the young Spurgeon was changed forever.
William Cantlow, an unknown baptist pastor baptised Spurgeon later the same year. The only reason anyone has ever heard of this man is because he baptised Spurgeon. Once again an ordinary person who was faithfully serving God.
The third ordinary person who played an important part in Spurgeon’s life was a cook called Mary King, who he spent time with whilst at Newmarket school. She spent several hours with him sharing the truths of the Christian faith and helped him grow in his theological understanding. Mary was just an ordinary person. She never preached or was a church leader. However, she played an important role in the development of Spurgeon’s faith.
All three of these individuals were just ordinary people who served God faithfully. Yet they played an important part in the development of a man who became a famous preacher known and loved all over the world. It’s impossible to know the number of people over the years who have been effected by the preaching of Spurgeon. However, without the three people mentioned above, the numerous people who have been blessed by Spurgeon may not have been reached.
The important lesson we can learn here is that God uses ordinary people, like you and me, who are faithful to Him.
Still Learning 