March 26: When position is irrelevant

Acts 6:8 And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and signs among the people

Have you ever asked somebody to do something, and they do something completely different? Or maybe you appointed someone to a certain position only to find out he or she is doing someone else's job? That’s what it feels like when we read about Stephen’s story in Acts 6. This man was part of the seven men chosen to be in-charge of the food distribution to the widows (Acts 6:5), but instead or maybe on top of doing that, we see him preach the gospel and even perform signs and wonders amongst the people. I wonder how the apostles felt when they heard of what Stephen was up to.

Well, one can hardly blame Stephen for what he did. The Bible says twice that he was full of the Holy Spirit and faith (Acts 6:5, 8). And anyone with those credentials would naturally feel inclined to share about Christ to those around them. If you remember Acts 1:8, the very purpose of being filled with the Holy Spirit was to be a wtiness (But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me.) Stephen might have been on kitchen duty, but that did not stop him from sharing his faith to those around him. His list of tasks might not have had "preaching the gospel" in it. But that didnt matter to him. He was a man full of faith and power/Holy Spirit. And for such a person the occasion or their position is irrevelant.

While it might be true that not everyone is called to stand at a pulpit and preach to a crowd, it is a given that anyone filled with God's Holy Spirit is not going to be quiet about their faith. Sharing the Gospel has nothing to do with talent or position, but everything to do with the presence of God within us. We emit what we are full of.

When we are full of God’s spirit, we are going to spill out His presence to those around us. Our conversations will become God-talk, not small-talk. Our stories will become His stories, not someone else’. Our plans will become God-pleasing, not self-fulfilling. It’s inevitable. Everything that we do or say will reflect God inside of us. And it will not matter whether we are in the roster to serve or not. It will not matter whether we are in the music team, or the welcoming team, or the parking team! It will not matter even whether we are at work or in the church. We will become a sweet smelling aroma of God wherever we go.