Matthew 9:8 As Jesus passed on from there, He saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth, and He said to him, “Follow me.” And he rose and followed Him.

Good morning!

As I mentioned during this week’s message, yesterday marked 10 years since Amanda and I came to serve on staff at FEC. To say it has been a joy would be a huge understatement. I can’t put into words how grateful my family is for the way you love and care for us!

With that said, when I think back on my time in Bible College at TFC, I never would have imagined that I would get to serve at a church in my hometown. It was almost unheard of at TFC for one to do so, and I assumed I would serve outside of Georgia.

I will never forget the stress that searching for a ministry opportunity after college brought me. It was common for students to check the job opportunity board located in one of the buildings at school. Churches from all over the southeast to all the way to the west coast would send in their job descriptions looking for potential candidates for their job openings. I can honestly say if I were looking for a young person in ministry, TFC is a great place to start. It’s a place where young people are trained, equipped, and sent out to do the work of God. Again, it’s a great place to go to school and great place for a church to look for a potential pastor.

However, when we get to Matthew 9, we see Jesus finding one of His followers at the most unlikely of places: a tax booth. In the eyes of many, a tax collector had no place in ministry. They were seen as greedy traitors that used their occupation to pad their own pockets and exploit their fellow Jews. From an outsider looking in, Matthew didn’t seem to meet the qualifications to join Jesus’ team…

But Jesus did what only He can do!

He transformed Matthew from the inside out. Matthew left everything! His career… his financial stability… his protection from Rome… and he became one of the people who wrote a record of our Lord and Savior. Talk about a transition…

As we begin our week, I want to ask you a question… have you ever felt like you couldn’t be used by God? Maybe it’s because of past choices. Maybe it’s because of how you were raised… where you’re from… I’m sure the enemy has told you many more reasons… but I want to remind you that Jesus is the one who can create beauty from ashes… He’s not looking for how much ability you may have. He’s more interested in your availability.

What does it take? Taking a step towards Him and leaving your old life behind! God wants to use you, so go be salt and light wherever He takes you this week!

-Taylor