From Rags to Riches

What’s your favorite rags to riches story? Was it watching Cinderella transform into a ball gown ready thanks to the Fairy Godmother? Or maybe it was seeing Charlie Bucket find the golden ticket that launched him into a new life? Or maybe even John Rockafeller who began his life with nothing and went on to become known as the all time wealthiest men in American history. Truth be told, we love the stories of those who started at a humble beginning and went on to be so much more. They’re inspirational. They drive us to achieve the ending for ourselves. And the reality is, what if that could be our story.

When it comes to our faith and the journey we’re on, every believer has been transformed from rags to riches. We’ve been given something greater than wealth, status, or society could ever provide. You may feel ordinary. But the truth is, because of Jesus Christ working in your life, something extraordinary is about to happen. Don’t believe that? The evidence of this work is all over Scripture. One psalmist records one such story this way, [God] chose David his servant and took him from the sheep pens; from tending the sheep he brought him to be the shepherd of his people Jacob, of Israel his inheritance. And David shepherded them with integrity of heart; with skillful hands he led them (Psalm 78:70-72 NIV). Before he was King David with all the riches and exploits that went along with his title, David was a simple shepherd who cared for his father’s flock. He wasn’t even the most acclaimed son of Jesse. There were six others who were seen as more favorable. Yet God saw something in David and had great plans for him. Even with all his ups and downs, David knew who was the one working behind the scenes. At the end of his life, his last words were David, the son of Jesse, speaks - David, the man who was raised up so high, David, the man anointed by the God of Jacob, David, the sweet psalmist of Israel (2 Samuel 23:1 NLT).

David knew who he was. And he knew who got him there. God had done a great work in this humble shepherd. Transformed his life from rags to riches. And the amazing news is that he’s still doing that for every single believer today. You may feel completely ordinary. Wandering the same path as every other day. And that’s exactly where God has called you to be. Jesus is still transforming hearts and minds. Raising each of us from the rags of our past into the riches of the kingdom of Heaven. He has you where you are for a purpose. He’s still doing the extraordinary things in the most ordinary of circumstances of our lives. Be transformed today!