No Such Thing As Ordinary (Guest Post)
Today I’m welcoming my friend and fellow Proverbs 31 Ministries author, Suzie Eller, to share from her beautiful new devotional, Come With Me:ย A Yearlong Adventure in Walking with Jesus.ย Be sure to enter to win a copy below.
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โThere is no such thing as an ordinary life if Iโm at the center. ~Jesusโ
For a long time, I believed I was ordinary.
And I still do, except for the fact that Jesus lives in me. Which means that His presence spills out over every part of my life. Everything that I am. Everything that I do.
Really, Suzie?ย ย
I know. Faith has been diminished โ even by believers โ to something we do, or donโt do. Weโve forgotten that faith is life changing. That we have been given power from on high, for the purpose of loving a broken world.
When I look in the mirror, I see a middle-aged woman (if I live to 114) with a smattering of freckles and hazel eyes. I see a mom. A wife. A wrinkle that has crept under my nose, just like my momโs.
Jesus sees a warrior. Anointed. Called. Equipped.
In Luke 9, Jesus calls together a group of ordinary men. He speaks over them, telling them that theyโll walk in power and authority as they follow Him.
But Suzie, thatโs the disciples. Thatโs not me.ย
I donโt know about you, but Iโm a disciple too. As the early disciples walked with Jesus, their circle grew. They shared the Gospel. They mentored. They believed. They lived their faith. Other ordinary men and women joined in โ all of them disciples.
Just like me. Just like you.
We are modern-day disciples and thereโs an invitation as we follow Jesus. Every single day. We are invited to move beyond loving our faith โ all the good things that come with it โ toย liveย our faith.
What happens when we listen for His invitation in the everyday, ordinary aspects of our life?
We overcome hard things, with His help. We forgive our enemies, even when everything within us wants to punish them for a life time (or at least for a day or two). We acknowledge when we are the difficult ones, and seek His forgiveness. We believe in the face of the impossible. We reach for Heavenโs wisdom, when ours is in short supply. We fill ourselves with the power of His word and presence, instead of all the other things that donโt come close to that gift.
We dare to believe that we are anointed, simply because Jesus offers it.
We arenโt perfect.
We donโt have all the answers.
We wonโt fix the world, though Jesus will help us influence a portion of it.
We still look in the mirror, and see those same old features staring back at us. Iโll still be holding on to my middle-aged status, even though it means Iโll have to live to 114.
Yet what is on the inside becomes just as visible.
We live as disciples, following Jesus in our ordinary lives, making a dent in a broken world with His love. Becoming more like Him as we walk with Him. And thatโs an extraordinary life, because Heโs at the center of it all.
FREE GIFT
Suzie has a free gift for you: โ13 Prayers for Come With Meโ, a free PDF to encourage you to accept the invitation to follow Jesus wherever He goes. Clickย hereย to subscribe and receive the PDF in your inbox.
GIVEAWAY
Leave a comment below for a chance to win a copy of Suzie’s Come With Me devotional. U.S. Addresses only please. Winner will be announced here on Monday, November 6.
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Suzanne Eller (Suzie) has served Proverbs 31 Ministries for 10 years. Sheโs an author, international speaker and Bible teacher, top 100 Christian womenโs blogger, and popular media guest. She loves nothing more than watching God work in the heart of a woman. Check out her new devotional,ย Come With Me:ย A Yearlong Adventure in Walking with Jesus.
This sounds wonderful and like a great devotional to open my time with God.
Love this! I’ve listened to Come With Me as an audio book. It was fantastic. I’d love to have a copy to mark up and really ponder. Thanks for the chance.
Ooh! This devotional sounds perfect for me!
This looks like a great devotional! I would love to win a copy! Walking with Jesus is my goal every day. I want to live all out as one of His disciples.
Thank you for this encouragement, Suzie. It’s hard to see myself as a warrior, anointed, called and equipped. Thank you for reminding me that Jesus’ presence on the inside fills me with all I need to “warrior-on.”
Not always easy to Live our Faith is it, much food for thought thank you. I am certain I would love your devotional.
Would love to win Suzie’s new book!
Thanks for the reminder to look for him in everything I do each day.
Thanks for the devotion. I especially liked” we dare to believe we are anointed” Yes, we are His disciples – fishers of men. We are to follow the great commission in Matthew 18: 19 -20 vs. 20 b reminds us that “Jesus is with us always, even to the end of age.”
This would be a great book to win !