In the second year of Darius the king, in the sixth month, in the first day of the month, came the word of the LORD by Haggai the prophet unto Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest, saying….
In the eighth month, in the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord came to Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo the prophet, saying. ……Your fathers, where are they? And the prophets, do they live forever? (Zechariah 1: 1&5).
Iddo the prophet or his son Berechiah might not have been known at all after their days if not for the grandson, Zechariah who was available for God’s use as a prophet and published the word given to him.
If you are a child of a prophet, you have a good heritage and you should celebrate it and lay hold of it. Don’t allow it to slip away from you. You cannot be a child of a prophet (or pastor) and allow your life to be used for menial things that cannot advance God’s kingdom despite the great deposits that God has made into your life. God is a progressive God, he has a greater plan for your life. He would want to use you more than he used your parents, allow him.
If you are not related to anyone who served or serves God, it doesn’t indicate that God has not called you. Please remember Gideon (Jerubbaal); his father was an idol worshipper (Baal) yet God used him mightily (Judges 6:28-32).
God uses people who are available
God uses people who are available, make yourself and your heart available for him. You might not be educated or highly educated; it doesn’t really matter. God looks at the things deposited in your life to determine your function. he will not ask you to do what you don’t have the ability to do.
Prophets don’t live forever
Prophets don’t live forever, there is time for everything (Ecc. 3:1). God used some people some years ago, is using some people now and he is still recruiting more and more people for expansion and replacements in His kingdom (I Samuel 15:28, 18:12, David replaced Saul as King).
Prophet Haggai prophesied in the 6th and 7th month of the 2nd year of Darius and wrote only two chapters of the bible. In the same 2nd year, by the 8th month, Zechariah was raised up to prophesy and he continued beyond the 4th year, prophesied about the death of Jesus and wrote 14 chapters of the bible. Does anyone know what happened to Haggai? Why did he prophesy for just two months and wrote only 2 chapters? What if Zechariah didn’t pay attention to God’s call on his own life assuming that Haggai would continue to bring God’s message to his people. Discover your purpose in God’s kingdom and start to fulfill it now.
God might be giving you the privilege to be used of him in certain areas or places now. What is your attitude to your assignment? Do you celebrate or despise it? Don’t feel that yours is not really needed because many people are doing similar things. Don’t consider it insignificant compared to other people’s assignments. When you start fulfilling your assignment, you will understand it better and it will grow
Remember, that the assignment is for a season. Prophets don’t live forever and different generations have their own prophets. Even if you are alive, if you don’t start fulfilling your purpose at the right time, you may never get around it. Don’t let your season slip off from your hands carelessly; it will be too costly. Wait on God, understand what he has committed to your hands and obey his voice now!
God gave you that resource for a purpose
Esther was placed as a queen in Media and Persia for the purpose of saving the Israelites (Esther 4:14). If Esther had failed, she would have been killed along with the other Israelites. Discover the reason for your position. There must be a kingdom interest that you should always protect. Who knows whether God allowed you to have that position or resource because of a particular problem that affects his children close to you.
Some years ago, I noticed a nudging in my heart to get a degree in nutrition after reaching the peak of medical career. I struggled with the thought for a long time like a woman being begged to have another child when the last child is twelve years old. Then one day as I was reading Genesis chapter 36, the Holy Spirit made me realize that Joseph’s dream and purpose as spiritual as it was, was meant to rescue the Israelites and the entire world from food problem. Then my eyes opened and I saw God’s purpose in further education in nutrition. God has used it to open several doors of ministry to reach people with the gospel.
I usually receive phone calls, SMS, emails of stories of people whose lives have been transformed through this platform. Is there any advantage you have over your brethren? Position, knowledge, money, ideas, materials? etc. God has not brought you into the special advantage or abundance just for you to enjoy and hoard the left-over for generations unborn. Find out the relevance of that position to your brethren and use it to improve their lives.
Remember the lepers at the gate of Samaria. God used their footsteps to drive the enemies away and brought them into abundance of food and other goods. The reason for the abundance was not to feed them alone (2 Kings 7:3-10). If they remained there and continued living on the spoil all alone, then calamity would have fallen on them indeed.
Serve God with your life and all the resources he has given you. You will not just experience rewards here on earth but also receive several eternal rewards in heaven.