The Sparkplug

Bible Reading: Acts 4:13; 1 Corinthians 1:27-31

When Micah’s family got home from church and sat down to dinner, Micah didn’t say a word.

“You’ve been quiet,” said Mom. “Did something happen today at church?”

Micah sighed. “Today we were assigned parts for the church play, and I didn’t get one.”

His older brother Ethan chimed in. “They didn’t give you a part?”

“Well, not the one I wanted! I’m in charge of set decoration. Mr. Ritter told me that he really needs me on the decorating team. But I was hoping for a more important part.” Micah sighed again. “I just wish I was good at something else.”

Ethan thought for a moment. “Micah, why don’t you come out to the garage with me after dinner? I’ve been working on Mom’s car, and there’s something I want to show you.”

When the table was cleared, the boys went to the garage and Ethan lifted the hood of their mother’s car. “Mom’s car was running rough, so she asked me to take a look at it,” Ethan said. “There was a part that had gone bad. Can you guess which one?”

Micah didn’t know as much about cars as his brother did, but he pointed to a big box that looked pretty important. “This part?” he guessed.

Ethan smiled. “Nope!” He reached over the whole engine and pulled out a tiny piece not much bigger than his finger. “This is a sparkplug,” he explained. “Without these guys, the whole car stops working right.”

Micah held the part in his hand. “Wow,” he said. “But it’s so small!”

“You know,” Ethan said, “sparkplugs sort of remind me of how God uses people. The Bible tells us that people were amazed when they saw the boldness of Jesus’s disciples because they were uneducated and common men. But God still used them to do incredible things! Because we’re followers of Jesus who have been given the Holy Spirit, it isn’t about what talents and abilities we have to offer—it’s about what Jesus can accomplish through us when we trust Him to use whatever gifts we have. The gifts themselves aren’t as important as trusting Jesus to help us use them for His glory.”

–Emily Tenter

How About You?

Have you ever felt like you were too young or too small to be used by God? The Bible is filled with stories of people who probably felt that way too. But God still chose to use them to do mighty things! And He wants to use you too. No matter what gifts you have to offer, Jesus can use you to shine the light of His love and truth into people’s lives and point them to Him.

Today’s Key Verse:
1 Corinthians 1:27 God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. (NIV)

Today’s Key Thought:

Jesus can use anybody