I would like to tell you a story. It’s about two men, a savior, and a parking
lot. This story is about fear, courage,
and submission. It’s about spiritual
warfare. It’s about fitting one’s feet
with the shoes of the gospel of peace, throwing the belt of truth around one’s
waist, firmly fastening the breastplate of righteousness and the helmet of
salvation to one’s body, raising the shield of faith to deflect the arrows of
Satan, and finally counter-attacking with the sword of the spirit which is the
word of God. This story is about doing
all of the above and then marching boldly behind the power of God to hurl our
attack straight into the jaws of the enemy, who “prowls around like a roaring
lion seeking someone to devour.” Do you
consider yourself too old or too sophisticated for stories? I earnestly hope not. Let me begin.
As I walked outside through the
door of a local restaurant this afternoon, I held it open for the man behind
me. As we proceeded together into the
parking lot, he said “It sure is warmer here than where I live.” Immediately my natural inclination flared to
life in my brain. You see, I am not at
all a social person. I have learned to
overcome this in some situations, such as at church or at work. But still, my default mode of operation is to
be silent and withdrawn. So when this
man made his statement my immediate disposition was to make some sort of
friendly but terse response and then head to my car to leave. But something stopped me. I sensed this was an opportunity for
conversation. And although conversations
with strangers are one of my least favorite activities, my Lord and savior
Jesus Christ, has commanded me to make disciples. I cannot make a disciple without witnessing
to someone about Jesus through conversation, because the word of God says “How
then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have
not heard? And how will they hear
without a preacher? How will they preach
unless they are sent? Just as it is
written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of good
things!” So I swallowed my initial
response and began to engage this man in conversation.
I
learned that he was from Rainelle. He is
an older man, 61, and complained of problems with his shoulders. He shared with me that he takes care of his
elderly mother, who has some level of mental deterioration and cannot care for
herself. We commiserated together about
how our bodies break down all too quickly and when we were younger we did not
appreciate this fact.
At two points in the conversation I
attempted to drop “bait” in the “water” by mentioning the bible and the name of
Jesus. My bait went unnoticed. He gave no response whatsoever. So I thought to myself “He’s either ignoring
me on purpose or it went over his head.”
I could see the potential for my opportunity to slip away, as it has
done so many other times due to my own lack of courage. I could feel the tugging of my flesh urging
me to let it go and get on with my day.
But how can I call myself a Christian, which literally means “little
Christ”, if I don’t act like Christ? And
do we ever see Jesus shrinking from an opportunity to preach repentance and the
coming of the kingdom of God to those He encountered? I think not!
So with these thoughts flying through my brain at about Mach 5, and
desperate to not once again fail my Lord as I have done so many times before, I
decided to throw my ridiculous caution to the wind and go for
broke. After all, I reasoned, I will
most likely never see this man again so what have I got to lose and why in the
world am I hesitating? So I plunged in
and asked him if I could pray for him.
He said yes, the next time I prayed I could pray for him and his
mom. I told him I prayed every day and
then I asked him if he had a relationship with Jesus Christ.
This simple and direct question,
only eight words, opened the floodgates.
He began to talk about what I recognized as a very cultural perception
of being right with God by doing good deeds and being moral. He spoke about how he worries too much and
becomes frantic in trying to care for his mother. I was able to assure him that, although Jesus
never promised that we would have easy lives, he did promise that we would experience
peace through knowing Him. And more
importantly, I warned this man that unless he and his mother do have a
relationship with Christ, they are under the wrath of God because of their
sin. I asked him if he had a bible in
his home. When he responded in the
affirmative, I encouraged him to read the gospel of John. He asked me to have my pastor pray for
him. I assured him that I would do more
than that; I would have my entire church pray for him and I would be praying
for him daily. He allowed me to pray
with him right there in the parking lot and accepted my telephone number which I
encouraged him to use.
So my friends, I have three
instructions for you, if you are willing to receive them.
1.
Don’t you dare think positive thoughts about me. This was not about me, it was about Jesus
Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit at work in me. As I described, something as simple as having
a 10 minute conversation is a major hurdle for me to overcome. But truly “I can do all things through Him
who strengthens me.”
2.
Please know that if you struggle to share your
faith you are not alone. We are all in
this together and many of us share the same or similar struggles. But through the process of being sanctified by
obedience (please don’t miss that underscore; although God granted the
increase Paul and Apollos were still held responsible for planting and
watering) you can experience the joy that comes from being a dutiful child of
your heavenly Father and you can know that “the peace of God, which surpasses
all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
3.
Please pray for Wayne Ayres, the man I met
today. His mother’s name is Laurie. Pray that he will take my advice to read the
gospel of John. Pray that he will call
me. Above all pray that he will come to
know the Lord. Wayne desperately needs
to be justified before God through the righteousness of Christ, as do all those
who do not have a saving relationship with Jesus.
Let us together become a mighty
army before the Lord. You can do
this! I would be delighted to speak with
anyone who needs encouragement, a spare shoulder to cry on, or a ready foot to
kick you in the backside when necessary!
Peace and grace to you through God the father and our Lord Jesus Christ.
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