Episode 38: Ordinary Turned Extraordinary

In Episode 38, “Ordinary Turned Extraordinary,”  Kim talks about the spiritual principle that even the ordinary, when surrendered totally to God, can accomplish extraordinary things.

 

Our specific scripture texts for today are just two verses:

 

After Ehud, Shamgar son of Anath rescued Israel. He once killed 600 Philistines with an ox goad. (Judges 3:31)

 

“In the days of Shamgar son of Anath,

    and in the days of Jael,

people avoided the main roads,

    and travelers stayed on winding pathways. (Judges 5:6)

 

 

Additional Scripture:

 

13 You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body

    and knit me together in my mother’s womb.

14 Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!

    Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it.

15 You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion,

    as I was woven together in the dark of the womb.

16 You saw me before I was born.

    Every day of my life was recorded in your book.

Every moment was laid out

    before a single day had passed. (Psalm 139:13-16)

 

18 The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved know it is the very power of God. 19 As the Scriptures say,

“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise
    and discard the intelligence of the intelligent.”

20 So where does this leave the philosophers, the scholars, and the world’s brilliant debaters? God has made the wisdom of this world look foolish. 21 Since God in his wisdom saw to it that the world would never know him through human wisdom, he has used our foolish preaching to save those who believe. 22 It is foolish to the Jews, who ask for signs from heaven. And it is foolish to the Greeks, who seek human wisdom. 23 So when we preach that Christ was crucified, the Jews are offended and the Gentiles say it’s all nonsense.

24 But to those called by God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 This foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God’s weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength.

26 Remember, dear brothers and sisters, that few of you were wise in the world’s eyes or powerful or wealthy when God called you. 27 Instead, God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful. 28 God chose things despised by the world, things counted as nothing at all, and used them to bring to nothing what the world considers important. 29 As a result, no one can ever boast in the presence of God.

30 God has united you with Christ Jesus. For our benefit God made him to be wisdom itself. Christ made us right with God; he made us pure and holy, and he freed us from sin. 31 Therefore, as the Scriptures say, “If you want to boast, boast only about the Lord.” (1 Corinthians 1:18-31)

 

Additional Information:

 

An ox goad was a strong, 8 foot pole with a sharp point on one end used to goad livestock into moving, and the other end was a spade for cleaning the dirt off the plow. (Tony Evans, Tony Evans Bible Commentary, Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville, TN., 2019, p. 268 and Warren W. Wiersbe, The Wiersbe Bible Commentary: The Complete Old Testament in One Volume, David C. Cook Publishing, 2007, p. 435)

 

“What is a feeble instrument in the hands of one man is a mighty instrument in the hands of another, simply because the spirit of that other burns with holy determination to accomplish the work that has to be done.” (Joseph Parker, the People’s Bible, vol. 5 (London: Hazell, Watson, and Viney, Ltd. 1896) 345.

 

 

For a deeper dive into the book of Joshua, join Kim as she teaches “Finding Courage for Life’s Battles: Life Lessons from the Book of Joshua.”

 

To take her FREE 3-Day Online Bible Study entitled “Let  God Transform U through His Word: Why Is Personal Bible Study So Important to Your Christian Life?”.

 

Check out Kim's website at https://gettinghealthyall4hisglory.com for blog posts and her PDF Printable collection.

 

Remember, “It’s Always a Trust & Obey Kinda Day!”