God Uses Ordinary People Who Say Yes

Devotional

Day 1: God uses ordinary people who are willing to go.

The world often looks for impressive, influential, and extraordinary individuals to make a difference. Yet, throughout history, God has consistently chosen the average, the overlooked, and the seemingly unqualified to accomplish His greatest works. He does not call us because of our inherent ability but because of our availability. Our willingness to say "yes" is the catalyst He uses to change the world through us. [39:40]

And he called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. (Mark 6:7 ESV)

Reflection: In what area of your life have you been waiting to feel qualified or extraordinary before saying "yes" to God? What would it look like to offer your simple willingness to Him in that area this week?

Day 2: Our unbelief can limit what we experience of God's power.

Familiarity can breed a cynical skepticism that blinds us to the work of God right in front of us. When we only see the ordinary, we risk completely missing the extraordinary things God desires to do. A heart of unbelief places a limitation not on God's ability, but on our own experience of His power and presence. The greatest hindrance to God's work is often our refusal to believe He can work through the mundane. [47:38]

And he could do no mighty work there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them. And he marveled because of their unbelief. (Mark 6:5-6a ESV)

Reflection: Where in your life or in your community have you settled for a small view of what God can do? What is one step you can take this week to actively choose belief over skepticism?

Day 3: Willingness means saying yes before we know everything.

We often desire a complete roadmap and a full guarantee of outcomes before we commit to obedience. God, however, frequently calls us to step out in faith long before the entire picture is revealed. This requires trusting His character more than our own understanding. True willingness is about placing our "yes" on the table, making ourselves available for whatever assignment He may have. [53:55]

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. (Proverbs 3:5-6 ESV)

Reflection: Is there a prompting from God you have been postponing because you don't have all the answers? What would it look like to trust His guidance and take one step of obedience this week?

Day 4: Willingness requires stepping out of our comfort zones.

Following Jesus has never been a call to a life of comfort and convenience. Obedience will inevitably lead us into situations that feel unpredictable, challenging, and far beyond our own capabilities. It is in these moments of discomfort that our faith is stretched and we learn to rely on God's strength rather than our own. Courage is not the absence of fear, but moving forward in spite of it. [57:44]

He charged them to take nothing for their journey except a staff—no bread, no bag, no money in their belts—but to wear sandals and not put on two tunics. (Mark 6:8-9 ESV)

Reflection: Where is God inviting you to move from a place of comfort into a place that requires greater dependence on Him? What is one practical, if small, action you can take to accept that invitation?

Day 5: We are called to depend on God, not ourselves.

God intentionally calls us to tasks that exceed our personal resources and abilities. When we have nothing to rely on but Him, we learn the profound lesson of true dependence. Our role is not to produce results but to be faithful and available; the outcome is always in His hands. God’s power flows most freely through those who recognize their need for Him in everything. [01:05:05]

And they went out and proclaimed that people should repent. And they cast out many demons and anointed with oil many who were sick and healed them. (Mark 6:12-13 ESV)

Reflection: In which relationship or responsibility are you most tempted to rely on your own strength rather than on God's power? How can you intentionally practice dependence on Him in that area today?

Sermon Summary

Mark 6 frames a simple but radical claim: God changes the world through ordinary, available people. A Chinese woman named Lu models how steady compassion and refusal to treat human life as disposable can rescue dozens and mobilize a community; her story sets the tone for the biblical portrait that follows. Nazareth proves a counterexample: familiarity breeds unbelief, and unbelief limits what God can accomplish among those who refuse to see the extraordinary in the ordinary. In contrast, the sending of the twelve in Mark 6 demonstrates the pattern of kingdom work—God empowers the unremarkable, sends them with authority, and asks them to travel light so dependence replaces self-reliance.

Willingness emerges as the decisive virtue: saying yes before knowing the whole plan, stepping beyond comfort, and trusting God with outcomes. The text unpacks several forms of willingness—agreeing to go without a full map, leaving possessions and ease, and accepting that responsibility for obedience does not equal control over results. Historical examples reinforce the point: ordinary craftsmen and fishermen, from William Carey to local ministry leaders, catalyze movements not by superior skill but by availability and dependence on God.

Dependence, not capability, proves the conduit for supernatural fruit. Jesus instructs the disciples to take almost nothing so they will rely on God for provision, open doors, and healing power. When ordinary people obey in humility and trust, the record shows repentance preached, demons cast out, and the sick healed. The account culminates in a theological lens: every human life bears worth, the cross displays the greatest rescue, and communion memorializes the heart of that rescue. The invitation closes with a call to examine personal willingness—where might yes be placed on the table today?—and to enter the mission as available, dependent followers who expect God to do what only God can do.

Key Takeaways

1. God uses the overlooked and ordinary God selects people the world dismisses so his power cannot be credited to human prestige. Ordinary backgrounds force the spotlight onto divine authority instead of human talent, making every success unmistakably God’s work. This reverses human calculations about who qualifies for ministry and reframes availability as the core spiritual asset. [41:08]
2. Willingness precedes full understanding Saying yes before all answers reshapes ministry from project planning into discipleship formation. Willingness opens paths that careful certainty would close; it aligns the heart to trust rather than control. Faith often begins on a bare invitation, not a finished roadmap. [52:31]
3. Obedience requires leaving comfort zones True following forces relocation of sources of security—home, schedules, reputations, and conveniences. Kingdom assignments commonly demand awkward steps and unfamiliar terrain, where growth and gospel work coexist. Comfort often masks a subtle refusal to be used. [56:37]
4. Dependence, not ability, secures fruit Traveling light trains reliance on God for provision, direction, and results; ministry responsibility lies in faithfulness, not guaranteed outcomes. This posture frees workers from performance anxiety and anchors success in God’s activity rather than human metrics. When dependence drives action, God accomplishes the extraordinary through the ordinary. [64:14]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[32:19] - Opening Prayer and Dedication
[34:25] - Mark 6 Introduced
[34:42] - Lu: Rescuing Lives from Trash
[41:08] - God Uses Ordinary People
[44:33] - Nazareth: Rejection and Unbelief
[49:54] - Sending the Twelve Two by Two
[52:31] - What Willingness Requires
[64:14] - Dependence Over Self-Sufficiency
[71:53] - The Cross as the Ultimate Rescue
[87:06] - Communion: Remembering the Body
[89:11] - Closing Prayer and Proclamation

Bible Study Guide

Bible reading
Mark 6:1-13 (ESV)
*1 He went away from there and came to his hometown, and his disciples followed him. 2 And on the Sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astonished, saying, “Where did this man get these things? What is the wisdom given to him? How are such mighty works done by his hands? 3 Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him. 4 And Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor, except in his hometown and among his relatives and in his own household.” 5 And he could do no mighty work there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them. 6 And he marveled because of their unbelief. And he went about among the villages teaching. 7 And he called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. 8 He charged them to take nothing for their journey except a staff—no bread, no bag, no money in their belts— 9 but to wear sandals and not put on two tunics. 10 And he said to them, “Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you depart from there. 11 And if any place will not receive you and they will not listen to you, when you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them.” 12 So they went out and proclaimed that people should repent. 13 And they cast out many demons and anointed with oil many who were sick and healed them.*

Observation questions

What was the reaction of the people in Jesus’ hometown when he taught in the synagogue, and what specific questions did they ask?
What instructions did Jesus give the twelve when he sent them out, and what were they *not* allowed to take with them?
According to the passage, what three specific activities did the disciples engage in as they went out?
The sermon opened with the story of Lu in China. What simple perspective did she hold that drove her actions? [37:41]

Interpretation questions

Why do you think the people of Nazareth struggled to see Jesus as more than “the carpenter,” and how did their familiarity limit what God could do among them?
Jesus instructed the disciples to travel with almost no provisions. What might he have been trying to teach them through this dependency?
The sermon stated that “willingness means saying yes before you know everything” [52:31]. How does this concept challenge common approaches to decision-making and obedience?
Why is dependence on God, rather than personal ability, the key to seeing supernatural fruit in ministry?

Application questions

Is there an area in your life where familiarity or comfort has caused you to overlook what God might be doing? What would it look like to approach that situation with fresh eyes and belief?
Where might God be asking you to put your “yes on the table” even before you have all the answers or a full plan? [56:23]
What is one practical step you could take this week to move out of your comfort zone and into a place of greater dependence on God?
The sermon mentioned that our role is faithfulness, while outcomes belong to God [01:01:59]. How does this truth free you from performance anxiety or the fear of failure in your spiritual journey?
Reflect on the story of Lu or William Carey. What ordinary, available act of compassion or obedience is God inviting you into right now?

Sermon Clips

But it's not my job to be a path director. It is my job to be a acknowledger in all of my ways, a truster with all of my heart. Willingness means saying yes before we know everything. Before I have the full picture, it's putting my yes on the table, before I even know the question that's gonna be asked so that my heavenly father can trust me enough that he knows if I have an assignment, if I'm gonna call someone, that guy, that girl, she's already put her yes on the table, and she meant it. [00:55:56] (33 seconds) #SayYesToGod

The truth is many of us already sense where God may be leading, but comfort keeps us where we already are. About two years ago, a man stood on this platform and had the opportunity to interview him. He he lives in this town that we're just reading about, Nazareth. Just a a dear brother in Christ, and we had the opportunity. Was so precious for us to pray over his family. He lives in Nazareth. And his name is YL. YL is a Christian, a a ministry leader in in Nazareth. Very influential. [00:58:31] (37 seconds) #StepOutOfComfort

God does not want us comfortable in our faith. It's not growing. It's gonna require us to step out of our comfort. Here's the third thing it's gonna require. Willingness means trusting god with the results. It's so hard. Another thing that just stands out is that disciples are not responsible for the results. What are they responsible for? Trust the lord with all their heart, lean not only on understanding. Acknowledge him in all their ways. They're responsible for the obedience. Jesus never tells them, here are the number goals that you have for each town. [01:00:45] (38 seconds) #TrustGodWithResults

He tells them what to do if people reject him because the mission's not dependent on the disciples. The mission is dependent on God. Our role is faithfulness. God's role is outcome. That truth is incredibly freeing. We don't have to control results. We simply have to be willing to go. Willingness is often the missing piece. When you look across church history, you you discover something interesting. The people God used most. Again, we're not always the most gifted. They were the most available. [01:01:46] (35 seconds) #AvailabilityOverAbility

Willingness. Willingness. And the truth is that the greatest limitation in god's work is rarely the lack of ability. It's a lack of availability. God is still looking for people who will say, Lord, if you wanna use my life. Here it is. It's on the table. It's it's it's for you. I I'm willing. So let me ask you a question. Where might God be calling you to be willing? Not responsible for results. I'm not a great teacher. That's not the question. I'm scared of eating food in Panama. That's not that's not the discussion. [01:02:34] (35 seconds) #HereIAmLord

You trust him for provision. You trust him for open doors. You trust him for results. And when they went out, God worked powerfully through them. Mark tells us that they preach repentance. They cast out demons. They healed sick people. God did the extraordinary things, didn't he? We started off talking about god's just looking for ordinary people. The disciples are just ordinary people, and god did extraordinary stuff through ordinary people. Not because they were impressive, but because they were dependent. God's power flows most freely through people who completely depend on him. [01:05:20] (37 seconds) #DependOnGod

But the greatest demonstration of how much human life matters to God was not seen in an act of rescue of 30 babies in China. It was seen on a hillside outside of Jerusalem. Because the Bible tells us that while we were still sinners, while we were spiritually broken, while we were lost, while we were helpless, god did not abandon us. He did not walk past us. He did not leave us where we were. Instead, he came for us, and Jesus stepped into our broken world, took our sin upon himself, laid down his life so that we could be rescued. The cross is the ultimate declaration of our value to God, not because we were worthy, not because we had earned it, but only because of his grace. [01:11:10] (53 seconds) #SavedByGrace

When her house became too full because she couldn't raise all 30 kids, she found other people around her in her family and in her friend group who would adopt these children. When she didn't have enough money, she worked harder. When others looked away, she leaned in and and stepped forward. And when people later asked her why she did it, she gave a very simple, not very eloquent answer. She says, if if I have the strength enough to collect garbage, how can I not recycle something more important as a baby's life? [00:37:25] (31 seconds) #RescueEveryLife

Ask a question about this sermon

Chatbot

Why does unbelief limit what God does?

What does willingness to go involve?

How does dependence shape effective ministry?

God Uses Ordinary People Who Say Yes

Devotional

Day 1: God uses ordinary people who are willing to go.

Day 2: Our unbelief can limit what we experience of God's power.

Day 3: Willingness means saying yes before we know everything.

Day 4: Willingness requires stepping out of our comfort zones.

Day 5: We are called to depend on God, not ourselves.

Sermon Summary

Key Takeaways

Youtube Chapters

Bible Study Guide

Sermon Clips

Chatbot

God Uses Ordinary People Who Say Yes

Share