Use What You Have

“But Moses said to the Lord, ‘Pardon your servant, Lord. I have never been eloquent…’ The Lord said to him, ‘What is that in your hand?’ ‘A staff,’ he replied.” – Exodus 4:10, 2
 
Shamgar’s story in Judges 3 is easy to miss, but it holds a powerful truth. While others in Israel’s history fought with swords, spears, or entire armies, Shamgar defended God’s people with nothing more than an ox goad (a long stick used to prod cattle). It wasn’t sharp. It wasn’t a weapon. But it was what he had, and in God’s hands, it was enough to win a victory.
 
The Bible is full of moments like that. Moses had only a staff, yet God used it to part the sea and bring water from a rock. David had a sling and a few stones, and with them he defeated Goliath. The widow in Zarephath had a handful of flour and a splash of oil, and God made it last through a famine. A little boy had five loaves and two fish, and in Jesus’ hands, it fed thousands. Gideon’s army had only three hundred men and some trumpets, yet God used them to rout the Midianites. Rahab had just a scarlet cord, and it became the sign of salvation for her family.
 
We often believe that God needs us to have more. More resources, more influence, more ability, before He can use us. But the truth is, He delights in using what we already have. Sometimes, He even allows us to be in situations where we don’t have much, so we will learn that our sufficiency is in Him, not in ourselves.
 
The question is not whether you have enough, but whether you are willing to give what you do have to God. Your time, your skills, your possessions, your influence, they may feel small, but in His hands, they are more than enough.
 
Teddy Roosevelt once said, “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.” Scripture takes that a step further. Do what you can, with what you have, where you are, and trust God with the rest.
 
What’s in your hand today? It may seem ordinary, but placed in the hands of an extraordinary God, it could change everything.