ARE YOU PREPARED TO BE USEFUL TO JESUS?

Mark 11:1-6

¹ When they were approaching Jerusalem, at Bethphage and Bethany, near the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples ² and said to them, “Go into the village ahead of you, and as soon as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there who has not yet been ridden; untie it and bring it. ³ If anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ just say this, ‘our Lord needs it and will send it back here soon.'” ⁴ They went away and found a colt tied near a door, outside in the street. As they were untying it, ⁵ some of the bystanders said to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?” ⁶ So, they told them what Jesus had said; and they allowed them to take it.

commissioned colt

The colt stood there at the edge of the city—ordinary, unnoticed, tied up like it had been every other day of its life. Yet when the word came that the Lord needed it, something shifted. The people watching didn’t argue or hesitate; they simply released it, as though they sensed that even the smallest creature can be swept into God’s great story when the moment arrives. That colt didn’t suddenly gain wisdom or strength. It didn’t become noble or heroic. It was simply available at the exact moment Jesus chose to ride. Scripture never tells us what became of it afterward, but its brief appearance has echoed through centuries because, for one sacred moment, it carried the King.

When I look back over my own journey, I find myself identifying with that humble animal more than with any of the more celebrated figures in the New Testament. I’m not the strategist, the miracle worker, or the bold preacher. I’m the creature who happened to be standing in the right place when the Lord tugged at the rope. And in that moment—however brief, however quiet—I was useful to Him. That alone feels like grace.

So I pray with open hands: Lord, when You call, untie whatever keeps us still. Loosen the knots of fear, hesitation, or self‑doubt. Make us ready to move when You speak, even if the task is simple, even if our part is small. Use us for Your glory, and let us find joy in being carried along by Your purpose.