“Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty… And what they said pleased the whole gathering, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit…” Acts‬ ‭6‬:‭3‬, ‭5‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Today is Acts 6.

Let’s leave that to the professionals… It is easy to think that the dividing line between clergy and laity needs to be well defined and not crossed. BUT no matter how we serve God one thing is clear. We need to be “full of the Spirit.”

The apostles were needing to devote their time to “preaching the word,” but a need arose within the church to care for the widows. This would require serving by distributing provisions. So they picked out seven men to serve who were “full of the Spirit and of wisdom.” Stephen was noted as being a man “full of faith and of the Holy Spirit.” He was also noted as being “full of grace and power,” and he was “doing great wonders and signs among the people.”

Stephen is a great example to us of an ordinary man who served an extraordinary God. Even in serving God in the most ordinary of ways, “waiting tables,” he served in the power of the Holy Spirit.

We are no different. Whether we serve God as a mother of children, a fast food worker, a business professional, or a full time minister in a local congregation, we need to serve as one “full of the Holy Spirit.” God has plans to use us where ever He has us for His glory! He plans to work “great wonders and signs” (verse 8 ) through our lives. The key is to live our lives “full of faith and of the Holy Spirit” as Stephen was.

Serving God is not just for the professionals…Whether preaching or waiting tables, we are called to know Him and make Him known!