Now, who of us can be used like this? There are some conditions. First, we must believe that God can use us to change the world.

A popular fish these days is the Japanese Carp or Koi. These fish will grow proportionately to accommodate the size of their surroundings. In a fish bowl they grow to two or three inches. In a pond they grow to three or four feet. Have you limited God's use of your life by the size of your faith in him? How small is your fishbowl?

The next time you think God cannot use you, remember that Abraham was too old; Jacob was a liar; Joseph was abused; Moses stuttered; Aaron was an idolater; Gideon was afraid; Rahab was a prostitute; David was a murdering adulterer; Elijah was depressed; Job went bankrupt; Jonah ran from God; John the Baptist ate locusts; the Samaritan woman was divorced, more than once; Zaccheus was too small; Peter denied Christ; the disciples fell asleep while praying; Timothy had an ulcer; and Lazarus was dead. Now, what's your excuse?

God uses those who believe he can. Can he use you?

Second, live for a legacy.

More than 150 years ago, Alexis de Tocqueville said of Americans, "It is an arduous undertaking to excite the enthusiasm of a democratic nation for any theory which does not have a visible, direct, and immediate bearing on the occupations of their daily lives."

Live for the line, not the dot. The Bible reminds us, "We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad" (2 Corinthians 5:10). A baby knows only its mother's womb until the day of its birth, when it emerges into a world it could not see or know.

One day you will step from time into eternity. On that day, only what you did for Christ will last. Only what you did for eternity will matter. And it will matter forever. God uses those who live for a legacy. Can he use you?

Third, declare your faith.

Lesslie Newbigin, bishop of the Church of South India, asserts: "When I say 'I Believe,' I am not merely describing an inward feeling or experience. I am affirming what I believe to be true, and therefore what is true for everyone. The test of my commitment to this belief will be that I am ready to publish it, to share it with others, and to invite their judgment and—if necessary—correction. If I refrain from this exercise, if I try to keep my belief as a private matter, it is not belief in the truth."

Martin Luther changed the world when he told the persecuting authorities, "Here I stand. I can do no other. God help me."

Jesus told his followers, "You are the salt of the earth; you are the light of the world" (Matthew 5:13, 14). Not "you will be" but "you are." Your private faith is already public. Is your witness effective or damaging to God's Kingdom? Do people see that you are proud of your God, or ashamed of him?

God uses those who will declare their faith. Can he use you?

And last, refuse to quit.

Col. Laird Gunnert was a POW in Vietnam, beaten and tortured mercilessly. Between "interrogations," he was forced to kneel for hours at a time. One day, Gunnert's Vietcong captors took him to an interrogation room he had not seen before. This time his beating was especially severe. He crumpled to the floor in a broken heap, and lay there in excruciating pain, too exhausted and battered to lift his face from the dirt floor.

Opening his eyes, Col. Gunnert saw something on the wall, about four inches from the floor, right in front of his face. As his eyes focused, he saw that someone had scrawled in the dirt and mud, "Keep the faith, baby!" Then the Colonel knew he was not alone, and that the faith was enough. And it was.

It's always too soon to quit. Who or what is tempting you to give up today? You may fail, but you're not a failure. 366 times the Lord tells his people "Fear not."

The Bible promises you: "our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us" (Romans 8:18). God can use anyone who will not quit being used. Can he use you?