In 1955, in Montgomery, Alabama, an African-American seamstress named Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a municipal bus to a white man. Her arrest jump-started the Montgomery Bus Boycott, one of the initial efforts in the subsequent Civil Rights Movement. Though she was active in local civil rights efforts before taking her stand for her own rights, she was a relative unknown who changed the course of American history.
Todd Beamer was an account manager on a business trip on September 11, 2001, when his plane—Flight 93—was hijacked by the 9/11 terrorists. Joined by other passengers, he galvanized efforts to take down the terrorists and prevent them from crashing the plane into the U.S. Capitol or the White House. They forced the plane to crash-land in a Pennsylvania field. Unknown publicly before that day, he remains one of the heroes of Flight 93.
When Maurice Hilleman’s daughter got the mumps in 1963, he took a swab sample from her throat and drove to his laboratory in the middle of the night. He developed a vaccine against mumps that is still used today—and went on to ‘develop more than forty other vaccines to protect against other communicable diseases. His vaccines have been administered hundreds of millions of times and probably saved countless lives.
After Candy Lightner’s 13-year-old daughter was killed by a repeat drunk driver in 1980, she founded Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD). MADD’s efforts have resulted in tougher penalties for those who drive while impaired, resulting in a marked decrease in drunk-driving cases and many lives saved.
Security guard Frank Wills was making his midnight rounds in the Watergate office building in Washington, D.C. He noticed tape over the lock of a basement door, so he removed it. When the tape was there again later that night, he called the police. As a result of his responsible actions, the Watergate break-in was uncovered, and a political conspiracy halted. And it ended the tenure of then President, Richard M. Nixon.
History is full of the stories of ordinary people who did extraordinary things, often changing the course of history. In our celebrity-centric culture, we are inundated with the same names every day: politicians, athletes, business and technology leaders, public and social servants, and entertainment celebrities. Many of them are famous because of the good they have done. Others seem to be famous just for being famous.
But let’s be honest: There are far more “unknowns” in the world than there are “knowns.” They are the faithful folks who are doing the right things, the responsible things, and the righteous things that keep the wheels of our world turning, humanly speaking. The generals couldn’t win their battles without the sergeants; the CEOs couldn’t make their products without the assembly line workers; and the Church couldn’t impact lives without the countless nursery workers and Sunday school teachers who serve faithfully week after week.
We thank the Lord for history’s unknowns whose names are known to God alone. But sometimes God uses an unknown person to do great things and become known to all.
Serving as an Unknown
One of the greatest revelations the Bible offers us is how God calls ordinary people and empowers them to do extraordinary things. In the beginning, everyone was ordinary! Everyone was unknown! Yes, God created Adam and Eve to be special, the ancestors of the human race. But when the story of redemption begins to unfold, we find Him choosing an unknown man, Abram, from a city in Mesopotamia, and saying, “I’m going to bless you to be a blessing to the world?”
That happened throughout the Bible when God used ordinary people to get the attention of others:..
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- A prostitute named Rahab lived in Jericho when the army of Israel laid siege to the city. She used her street smarts to secure her future by helping two Israelite spies. Not only did she save herself and her family, she ultimately became the great-grandmother of King David and an ancestor of Jesus Christ.
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- David was the youngest or his brothers, a shepherd boy who was known only to his family. But when his spiritual sensibilities were offended by a Philistine giant named Goliath, he stepped forward—not to make a name for himself but to do the right thing. He was anointed to be Israel’s king even before this event, he went from shepherd boy to king.
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- When God called a young farmer named Gideon to defeat the massive Midianite army, he protested: “O my Lord, how can I save Israel? Indeed my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house” (Judges 6:15). But by trusting the Lord, this reluctant farmer-general delivered Israel and became a judge (deliverer) for the nation.
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- A young Jewess among the captives in Persia, Esther became wife to the king. In this lofty position, she saved the Jewish people from a plot of genocide at the hands of a court official. Her cousin and mentor, Mordecai, captured her place In God’s plan: “Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom forsuch a time as this?” (Esther 4:14)
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- Born to elderly, priestly parents, John the Baptist might have lived an anonymous life in Judea except… God called him to a special role He would be the forerunner of the Messiah, calling Israel to repent and return to the righteous ways of God as His covenant people. We know his name today because of his faithfulness, dying as a martyr for the cause of God’s Kingdom.
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- In the last chapter of his letter to the church at Rome, the apostle Paul sends greetings to nearly thirty individuals, most of whom we know nothing about. Yet Paul used glowing words to describe them and commend their good works for Christ. Except for this mention, their names would be lost to history. But their selfless service made them known to the Lord and His Church in their day and ours.
Being Served by an Unknown
One side of the “unknown” coin is to allow God to call and equip us to fulfill His purpose, even when we don’t feel qualified. But there’s a flip side to that coin. Let me illustrate:
What do you think most Israelites thought of an unknown shepherd boy named David being anointed to be their next king?
How would the soldiers in Israel’s army react to a young, unknown farmer named Gideon being elevated to the rank of general?
What did many in Israel think when a young, unknown carpenter from Galilee came announcing He had been sent by God to inaugurate His Kingdom?
It’s one thing to be an unknown who is called by God. It’s another thing to be willing to believe God has called an unknown to make an impact in our life. We don’t have any problem believing that God might use a well-known, important person in our life. But if history is any guide (and it is!), we need to believe that God can use anyone to minister to us, teach us, be an example to us, or lead us.
Jesus was never offended that people didn’t know who He was. He simply shared the love of God with those who would receive Him. His life and ministry were about others, not about building up His own profile. And we need to be the same way. We need to be willing for God to use us in any way He chooses. And we need to receive those He brings into our life to bless us.
Is wisdom needed? Of course. But more than anything, an attitude of humility and openness is required. God may want to get our attention by calling us to a place of service or by using someone else in our life. In either case, we need to have ears to hear and eyes to see what God is doing. We need to listen for His Word, be familiar with His ways, and be sensitive to His will.
Life is about God, not about us.
It is about how He wants to use us and how He wants to use others in our life. All of us are unknowns in this world, to one degree or another. But not to God. He knows us by name and knows exactly how we can best serve and be served. He only needs to have our attention!
Dr. David Jeremiah, Turning Points Magazine & Devotional, July 2021
