Be Extraordinary, Not Ordinary

By Andy Geesey

March 1, 2008

Paul was a man who was used by God to do extraordinary things, but did you know that he did not start out that way? Believe it or not his name was Saul, and he actually used all of his worldly and religious education to work against the things of God.

After he witnessed the martyrdom of the deacon Stephen, Saul went to his leaders and received letters of authority authorizing him to arrest Christians. Saul, above all others, was well known to the early Christians as a threat, one who hated them, and who would bring much anguish and pain to them. He worked hard trying to stop the spread of Christianity. He was convinced that what he was doing was the correct thing to do, and he had the legal right to do it. He used any and all means available to him to bring an end to what he saw as a false teaching. People need to be sensitive to how they voice their convictions to someone else.

One day while Saul was on the way to arrest some Christians, something happened to him that changed his life forever. He had a first hand encounter with Jesus Christ. He met him face to face, and he was never the same again. He went on to proclaim the Name of Jesus every opportunity that he had. This led him into palaces and several court rooms. He gave an account of himself before judges and even kings. In the end, he gave his life but he did so bringing honor to his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Yes, Paul was a man of character who was allowed to do extraordinary things.

Today Satan is working very hard trying to capture our minds and hearts. He wants our focus to be on anything except the pure word of God. His desire is to keep people off of their knees and out of their bibles. Satan will use any means available to him to achieve his goal.

Like Paul, God wants you to do extraordinary things, for righteousness sake. But the question is, have you been brought to your knees yet? Have you come to a place in your life where you have begun to look up? Are you allowing Satan to work through men to keep you off of your knees and out of your bible?

Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 2:12 "Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God."

Paul knew that God wanted him. You and I to know and understand the things that God Himself freely gave to us, and for this reason He has given His Spirit to his children. In fact, Romans 8:9 teaches us that if any man have not the Spirit of God he is none of His.

Being extraordinary starts with having a first hand encounter with Jesus Christ and receiving God's Spirit. I'll write more about this later. If you have questions about how you can know if you have the Spirit of God dwelling in you, please: