This weekend I travelled some. It was a welcome getaway from the fast city life. The slow pace of the country side always leaves me thinking life is easier that way. No alarm to get you hopping out of bed at those ungodly hours. No traffic snarl-ups to contend with. Waking up to the melodies of bird song makes it something to keep going back to. Never mind that dog that has invented a game chasing my chickens all round.I dont mind the endless cups of tea we guzzle with the village women sitting out in the shade sharing experiences in the journey of life. The warmth is simply incomparable.


But something else made this last weekend special. I had the pleasure of sitting in a sermon with one very humorous pastor. I love pastors with a sense of humour. And so he was talking about making use of the different gifts that God has given us. He told the story of a man that had the least expected gift. The man stammered. And like Moses this man could have thought to himself, now how do I make something of myself and yet I stammer. But he didnt. He decided to use that which he had to make something of himself. He went into marketing.


This guy got a job selling Bibles. At first those on the panel were hesitant to hire him but he pleaded for a chance to prove his worth. Prove he did! You see, this man would walk up to an office. He would then beg for a minute of your time. He would then start by explaining that he sold Bibles. That explanation would take like five minutes. By the time he was through introducing himself, one would already have found out his speed of speech. And so if yours was a busy office you would want to get through with him as soon as you could and get back to work. But it is his next statement that takes the cake. He would then go on and tell you that if you did not want to buy a Bible he could read one to you!

Of course noone would want him standing there reading out the Bible and so most people would opt to buy the Bible and get on with their work. And so this man used what might have held back many to sell the highest number of Bibles in the company! Much to the surprise of all! This guys must have had a sense of humour. To even think up something like that! And make money out of it.

Most of us go through life with so much untapped potential. Many focus on what they do not have other than how they might use what it is in their hand. God always uses what it is that is at hand to lift us up. It might be someone who has the gift of the garb and uses it to cheer others up. Or that person who has such a  calm look around them that goes to reassure others around them.What ever God has bestowed upon each one of us could be used for some good if we set our mind to it. And just like in the Bible days, God does not use perfect people. He uses people like stammering Moses. Or bad tempered Peter.

And so what it is we cast aside as not important may just be the greatest gift we got. And we may not even know. Up until someone else recognises our gift or someone else brings it out for us. It is those less likely ones that God uses and all for his glory. Because God uses not the obvious but what is available to him. Even if it is the least attractive he will repackage it and use it for his glory. Only if we yield it to him.