When I listen to famous Christian
leaders talk about this subject of God's plan for your life, I
envision this major thing happening in my life. I imagine big
things, things happening in the limelight, something major etc. The
way it is sometimes preached it sounds like it is going to be
something significant. But when I started looking at the Word of
the Lord it is not necessarily the case. There are many unsung
heroes in the Bible that often go unnoticed. In the eyes of the
world they didn't necessarily amount to much in their lifetime, but
in the eyes of the Lord they completed their tasks and they will be
exalted in Heaven because of it.
There are several examples in the
Bible, but I am quickly going to go through just a few of them. The
first one that came to mind for me was the young boy with the five
barley loaves and two fishes. You all remember the story I am sure.
Jesus was teaching large crowds and they all followed Him
especially after He performed many miracles and healed the sick.
Now one day there were five thousand men (let alone all the women
and children!) that followed Jesus. It was getting late and there
was not food for all these people as they were gathered on a hill
near the Sea of Galilee at Bethsaida. Now Jesus was telling the
disciples that they should feed the crowd. They were astounded at
this request and Andrew spoke up:
John 6:9 "There is a young boy here
with five barley loaves and two fish. But what good is that with
this huge crowd?"
I want to pause there for a second.
This boy must have had wonderful faith. Think about it for a
second; here he was, simply a small boy, amongst this vast crowd.
There was no food for miles and no hope of finding food. He had
enough food to keep him going for the next few days, but after
that, he probably did not know where his next food was going to
come from either. He didn't know that Jesus was going to perform a
miracle with the food. He didn't know that the Lord was going to
multiply it in such a way that twelve baskets of bread were left
over after everyone ate their fill. All he knew from his
perspective was that they were in a dire need for food and he had a
little bit. But not even enough to sustain himself for the
next week. But he stood up and gave what little he had. He could
have hid it away and secretly ate of it when he became hungry. But
he didn't. He believed and shared what he had. It is wonderful for
me to see. He fulfilled his purpose for being there that day. We do
not know what his name was or what happened to him. We don't read
in the Bible that Jesus exalted him in front of the crowds for his
faith. He didn't receive any recognition or praise. But I promise
you that the Lord saw his heart and knew of his faithfulness. And
because of what he did, five thousand men received food that day
and that must have strengthened his faith tremendously. He gave the
little that he had and the Lord used it mightily.
I am sure most of you have read of
that event in the Bible and have never given another thought to
that boy. This could be the first time that you actually think
about it. What I am actually trying to say is that this boy was not
praised and his role could be seen as insignificant. But it wasn't.
He gave what he had and he did what the Lord required of him and
that makes him a hero in the spiritual world. He is one of many
unsung heroes of faith in the Bible and in the world today. You are
probably also one. Sit still for a moment and think of a time in
your life where you did something, something insignificant in the
eyes of the world. Think back to that time. Maybe you gave someone
a hug when they were on the verge of a breakdown, maybe you helped
an old lady across a very busy street which maybe saved her from
being hit by a car, maybe you saw a lost child walking alone in a
supermarket and helped him find his parents and you saved him from
possible child abductors. Who knows? But know this, you made a
difference that day. Your action might seem insignificant, but you
made a world of difference to someone and you are a hero for doing
that. Don't become discouraged, but look forward to the next
'insignificant' task that the Lord places over your path. You could
mean the world to someone.
Lord, please help us to look up to
You and know that You see all our actions and You are very pleased
when we do something without receiving recognition for it. Thank
you Lord.