1) Who taught Martin Luther and inspired his translation of the New Testament?
2) Who visited Dwight L Moody in a shoe shop and spoke to him about Christ?
3) Who were the parents of the godly and gifted prophet, Daniel?
4) Who was the wife of the great preacher Charles Haddon Spurgeon?  (And before some wag calls out "Mrs Spurgeon" - I want to know her Christian name!)
5) Who was the elderly lady who prayed faithfully for Billy Graham for over twenty years?
6) Who refreshed the apostle Paul in that Roman dungeon as he wrote his last letter to Timothy?
7) Who helped Charles Wesley get started as a hymn-writer?

Don't know?  Well, I'm afraid I can't help you because I don't know the answers either!  Sorry!  Before you ask why I am apparently wasting time with what appears to be a silly trivia quiz, stop and think. Without these "unknown" people, people who had a profound effect on the lives and ministries of much more famous people but whose names are not recorded, a huge chunk of church history would be missing!  These people were vitally important.

There are times in our lives when we experience feelings of self-doubt or insecurity. We wonder if we really have any effect on the world, on the lives of others, or if we would even be missed if we were not here.  Are we really people of significance, value and purpose?  A hundred years from now will it really make a difference that we were here?  Certainly, within our society, there are no shortage of voices telling us that, as individuals, we are not all that important. Rather, the emphasis is on what group we belong to, what label we bear!  For example, when we hear our politicians and others complaining about inequality of opportunity in the workplace, are they really concerned as to whether, on each occasion, the organisation in question has filled a vacancy with the most qualified candidate for the job?  No, the best person for the job is not their primary focus – they simply complain that this or that group appears to be under-represented.  If they are concerned about individuals at all, it is only because of the label that they wear!  That’s the way the world works.

It is not, however, the way that God works. To God, you and I are not "nobody". To God, we are valued, not on the basis of our membership of this group or that, but because He made us.  In His plans, unseen does not equal un-needed – nobody is surplus to requirements.  Tonight, I want you to realise your tremendous worth, uniqueness, significance and purpose in the sight of God.  And that is why we began with Psalm 139.

Fearfully and Wonderfully Made
In this Psalm, David writes about our worth, uniqueness, significance and purpose. In the few verses that we read together there are two truths that I want to highlight.

Firstly, you are Somebody, with a capital "S"! Hear again what David says, and think about what he is saying. “You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. ” Think about it. God has known you, and been working on you, even before you were two cells big!  Your face and features, your voice, your style, your background, your characteristics and peculiarities, your abilities, your smile, your walk, your viewpoint; everything about you is unique – right down to your fingerprints. The particular combination that is you is to be found in only one individual since the beginning of time – you.  God wanted you to be you! He designed you to be the unique person that you are.  Mr Cecil Mathers reminds us often, and rightly so, of the importance of having a positive confession.  So often we think of ourselves negatively, as unimportant, as nobody.  But it is simply not true!  Friends, it's time to speak out and declare the truth that God says about you. "I will proclaim the decree of the Lord: He said to me, you are my son; today I have become your Father" (Psalm 2:7). In Christ, you are a child of Almighty God!  "You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus ... If you belong to Christ, then you are Abrahams's seed, and heirs according to the promise"(Galatians 3:26 &29).  Bring your personal confession into line with what God Himself says about you in His Word.  Say to yourself, "I am somebody, because Almighty God made me who I am and I am "precious and honoured in His sight" (Isaiah 41:4)".  And as you say it, believe it.

Secondly, you make a significant difference in this world.  In verse 16 David says, “You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed”. Now turn to Ephesians 2: 10. What does Paul say?  “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do”. He is saying exactly the same thing as David, in a slightly different way.  David is acknowledging the truth about himself as God has revealed it to him.  Paul is talking about every redeemed child of God.  God is personally involved in the very days and details of your life. Turn to Matthew 10:29-31.  Jesus reminds us how little value we place on a sparrow.  They are insignificant little birds of which we take little notice.  And yet these small birds, of which we think so little, are the objects of Almighty God’s providential care.  He provides food for them and not one dies without His notice. And then Jesus says to us, “So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows”.  I like to think that when Jesus spoke those words it was with a strong and kindly emphasis on the word ‘many’.  We are of immense value to God and He has a plan and a purpose for each one of us.  Therefore we cannot help but make a difference in this world – either for the good by co-operating with God and achieving what He has planned or for ill, by failing to co-operate with Him and therefore failing to achieve the good that He has planned to do through us.  Again, the world tells us that we are of little significance. We aren’t Prime Ministers, or rock stars, or sporting heros, or academic geniuses, or military leaders, or captains of industry. We’re just ordinary and therefore shouldn’t expect to be able to make a difference.  That is a LIE of the Enemy!  We are "God’s workmanship".  We are His instruments in the world, and if we allow Him to work in us and through us by His Holy Spirit, we can do extraordinary things.  So again, let’s have a positive confession.  Recognise and say to yourself, “I make a difference” and believe it.

However, even though we understand these two truths: (1) that we are precious to God and (2) that He has a purpose for each of us, there are still times when we feel insignificant.  How can we really know that we are significant? The way to know God’s significance for your life is to do what God has called you to do, and keep on doing it until He tells you to stop!  Don’t try to be what you’re not.  Be yourself – the wonderful, unique person that God made you.  God has ordained a significant plan, purpose and opportunities for your life and He has equipped you to achieve His plan. Whatever gifts God has given you, find them and use them to His glory.

Jars of Clay
You might be thinking “Yes well, I know that God has given me some gifts but I’m not very good at identifying or using them, so how can I possibly glorify Him?”.  Turn with me to 2 Corinthians 4:7.  Paul has been defending his ministry and declaring the glory of the gospel of Jesus Christ. And then he says: “But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us”.  The jars of clay to which Paul refers are common, everyday, un-remarkable vessels which, of themselves, are of little account or value.  We have all heard of the Dead Sea Scrolls but can anyone tell me what they were contained in when they were found? As it happens, they were found in a system of caves inside large earthenware jars!  The jars in themselves were not precious, but what they contained was.  Paul’s jars of clay, like those earthenware jars containing the scrolls, derive their value from what they contain. But there is another truth here that I want you to grasp.  Have you ever been to Belleek and taken a tour of the pottery?  It's well worth a visit.  If you go, you will discover something very interesting.  The famous Belleek vases, jugs etc aren’t thrown on a wheel but are made using liquid clay and moulds. When an item first comes out of the mould it is solid enough to be handled and used but it is still quite soft and malleable, so much so that items are trimmed with an ordinary modelling knife!  Due to it’s greenish-grey colour it is known at this stage as ‘green-ware’.  The ‘jars of clay’ to which Paul refers are only slightly more robust than green-ware.  They have been dried but not fired.  After some use, they are likely to be a bit mis-shapen and chipped.  They might even have a few holes in them.  Paul recognises that every servant of God – you, me, even Paul himself – is far from perfect.  We may imagine that, before we can do anything to serve God at all, we need to be fully trained and fully competent.  Paul knows differently.  He knows that our imperfection, our lack of expertise and skill doesn’t hinder God.  In fact, if we allow Him to have His way with us and in us, our ‘unlikeliness’ actually works in God’s favour because it makes His power and His grace all the more visible.  In the opening sentences of his first letter to the church at Corinth, 1 Corinthians 1:26, Paul reminds the Corinthians what they were before God called them, “Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are”.  God doesn’t require you to have a degree in medicine before using you in the ministry of healing.  He doesn’t need you to have a degree in theology before using you to speak to others about His love and grace.  He just needs you to be available to Him, to be teachable and to rely entirely on Him, by His Holy Spirit.  It is His power and His grace, not our natural abilities, that achieve the results.  His power becomes all the more visible because of our weakness.

Paul knows this from His personal experience.  In 2 Corinthians 12:7 we find a comment of Paul’s that has provoked much speculation: "To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh...".  We don’t know what Paul’s thorn was and, since we’re not told, I don’t believe that it matters what it was.  What we do know is that he perceived it as hindering him in his ministry and three times he asked God to be delivered from it.  But God’s answer was no because – “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9).  God doesn’t expect us to be able to do His will without His help, either as a pre-condition of serving Him or as the result of serving Him.  Rather He desires that we make ourselves available to Him and then look only to Him for the strength and ability to do whatever He calls us to.

Conclusion
So, no matter what anyone else may say or think, remember this: you are Somebody!  You are the unique individual that God created you to be and you are precious to Him.  No matter what the world might say or think, you are Significant, so forget about man's opinion. "Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe" (Proverbs 29:25).  God created you with a purpose for your life.  By either achieving that for which He created you, or by failing to do so, you will make a difference in this world.  No matter how inadequate you may feel, whatever God calls you to do you can surely do, if you make yourself available to Him and look to Him for help. "The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever" (1 John 2:17).