For All Intents and Purposes

But I have raised you up for this very purpose, that I might show you my power and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.

-- Exodus 9:16

Post-it Notes.

They're those yellow paper squares stuck in homes and office cubicles around the globe. And because they were first considered an engineering failure, a multi-billion-dollar marketing bonanza was nearly overlooked.

In 1968, The 3M Company was developing a strong adhesive for manufacturing aircraft. The result, however, was a weak, pressure-sensitive substance that peeled away from surfaces without leaving a residue. Meanwhile, a 3M product engineer--who also happened to sing in a church choir--was seeking a way to prevent the movements of the song-page markers in his hymnal. He eventually applied some his company's seemingly useless adhesive, and to his delight, the markers stayed in place! There's much more to the story. But after 12 years of various setbacks, Post-it Notes eventually became one of the world's best-selling office supply products.

Like those resourceful 3M engineers who helped turn failure into success, our Creator uses some of the most unlikely and unqualified people to accomplish his purposes. Let's consider a few of Jesus' earliest followers. Peter, Andrew, John and James were fishermen, which was hardly the most respected profession of the era. Matthew was a tax collector--a despised individual who would have been considered a traitor by his fellow Jews. Simon the Zealot was someone we today might call a terrorist. And before coming to faith in Christ a few years later, the Apostle Paul, who wrote much of the New Testament, was a strict Pharisee devoted to hunting down, jailing and even killing Christians!

Although Peter proceeded to fail Jesus by three times denying that he even knew him, God used this impetuous servant to lead the early Church. John was likewise exiled by the authorities to the Mediterranean island of Patmos, where he wrote inspired Scripture that's been studied and debated for centuries: the Book of Revelation. And Paul--who described himself as the Chief of Sinners--is considered by many scholars to be one of the most important and influential figures in history.

Fast-forward 2,000 years and Christ is still using society's misfits like you and me to represent him and change the world.

"Come, follow me," Jesus summoned fishermen Peter and Andrew, "and I will make you fishers of men."