In his book Golfing with the Master, Phil Callaway writes about the mercy of God in the following way:
Have you ever wondered what would happen if certain Bible characters sent letters of application for ministry positions in a church? Would the search committee meeting sound something like this?
"Let's talk about this Adam."
"Well, he seems like a good man, but he takes bad directions from his wife. And you don't even want to know what he wears in the woods."
"How about Noah?"
"He's prone to taking on huge building projects without a permit. He's a pessimist too."
“And Moses?”
"Are you kidding? He's a lousy communicator. He stutters and stammers. He has a bad temper and has been known to hit things with a stick."
"So he's a golfer then?"
"That's another of his shortcomings."
"What about Elijah?"
"No way. Prone to depression. Collapses under pressure. Spends too much time by himself in the wilderness."
"And Sampson?"
"Hair's too long."
"Jonah?”
"Good runner, but he makes up big fish tales. Has been disobedient to God."
"Matthew?”
"Not a chance. Works for the IRS."
"What about this John the Baptist?"
"He sure doesn't dress like a Baptist. Strange diet. Makes the Pharisees mad."
"And Peter?"
"Bad temper. Curses sometimes. Claims to have visions.”
"What about these others on the list?"
"Zacchaeus is too short."
"Timothy is way too young."
"Methusaleh is too old."
"Sarah laughed too much."
"What about Judas?"
"Well, let's talk about him. He comes with good character references. Good connections. He's conservative, so he won't rock the boat. Handles money well. Maybe he's the one."
Aren't you glad God in His mercy chose to use the likes of these? They literally shaped the course of human history. And He will do it again through you.
“Once you were not a people, but now you are God's people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy” (1 Peter 2.10 ESV). We are a people of mercy…our salvation in Christ is through God’s mercy, and our opportunities to serve are gifts of His mercy. There will always be those who will find fault with us as individuals and suggest limitations upon our usefulness to God, focusing more upon our past than our future. But, in a reversal of the old saying, they "can't see the trees for the forest." The limitless force of God's Kingdom is directly related to the limitless potential of individual followers of Christ surrendered in complete abandon to Kingdom mission and ministry.
"According to his (God's) great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead" (1 Peter 1.3 ESV). We are born again to a living hope...and to a meaningful place in ministry within God's Kingdom.
Never underestimate what God can do through you. Never underestimate the worth of your witness, never underestimate the consequence of your contribution, and never underestimate the impact of your influence.
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