Ordinary People Doing Extraordinary Things
We live in a world obsessed with the extraordinary. Social media feeds are full of big achievements, glamorous lifestyles, and people doing things that make us feel like we’re barely keeping up. But when you turn to the Bible, you find something completely different. God doesn’t look for the extraordinary. He takes ordinary people, fills them with His Spirit, and does extraordinary things through them.
The Early Church: Ordinary Yet Empowered
The book of Acts is a gallery of normal people caught up in God’s mission. Fishermen, widows, seamstresses, carpenters, and businesswomen suddenly found themselves healing the sick, preaching to crowds, and seeing thousands turn to Jesus. They weren’t superstars. They were simply men and women who had said “yes” to Jesus, and then “yes” again to the power of the Holy Spirit.
When the Spirit came at Pentecost, everything changed. What had once been a timid group hiding behind locked doors became a bold, world-shaking community. Acts shows us that the extraordinary doesn’t come from talent, wealth, or influence. It comes from ordinary people who are willing to let God work through them.
My Story: Just an Ordinary Bloke
Not long ago, someone at a small group described me as “just an ordinary bloke doing extraordinary things.” And you know what? That’s exactly what I want to be known for. I’m nothing special. I don’t come with dazzling credentials or a superhero cape. I’m just a man who has kept saying “yes” to God, even when life threw me the curveball of a stage-four cancer diagnosis.
Through WayMaker (www.waymaker.org.uk), the charity I set up three years ago, I’ve watched God do extraordinary things. We’ve seen persecuted believers escape dangerous regimes, schools built from the ground up, villages transformed with clean water, families fed, churches planted, and even whole communities reached with the gospel through radio broadcasts that now touch nearly 10 million people every week.
Half a million pounds has flowed through WayMaker to projects like these, and I can honestly say it wasn’t because of clever strategies or perfect planning. It was because God takes the ordinary and, through His Spirit, makes the extraordinary possible.
Saying Yes to God
The secret isn’t talent or strength, it’s obedience. The disciples didn’t start out bold. In fact, they often got it wrong. But when the Spirit came, they stepped out in faith. They healed, they preached, they gave generously, they cared for the poor. And each “yes” to God unlocked more of His power.
I think that’s the invitation for us today. You might feel like your life is far too normal to make any real difference. But ordinary people, when empowered by the Spirit, can change the world. All it takes is an unconditional “yes.”
Yes to speaking up when the Spirit nudges you.
Yes to praying for someone who’s hurting.
Yes to giving generously even when it costs.
Yes to stepping into opportunities you don’t feel qualified for.
God doesn’t need our ability; He wants our availability.
Extraordinary Together
This isn’t just about individual callings either. Acts shows us that the church, together, is called to be a Spirit-filled community doing extraordinary things. When the believers gathered, shared, prayed, and cared for one another, the watching world couldn’t ignore it.
That’s the kind of church I long for: one full of people empowered by the Spirit, who keep the main thing the main thing, who live boldly, care for the poor, and take the gospel from your town or community to the ends of the earth.
Your Invitation
Maybe you feel ordinary. That’s good news. You’re exactly the kind of person God loves to use. The question is: will you give Him your “yes”?
The early church changed the world not because they were extraordinary, but because they were ordinary people who kept saying yes to an extraordinary God.
So let’s be that church. Let’s be those people. Let’s keep saying yes to the Spirit, yes to the mission, yes to the poor, yes to Jesus. Because when ordinary people say yes to God, extraordinary things always follow.
