Missionaries spoke during our a.m. service yesterday. Of course they shared their testimony, their vision, and the typical things you would expect a missionary to share. But this couple really struck chords in my heart. They were talking about the Great Commission and the three questions that it requires. This is what is surfacing in my spirit to share with you.
???Whom shall I pray for today???
- Be open to an unfamiliar name drop. Tears came to my eyes as I thought of God giving me an unfamiliar name because that particular person has no one to pray for them. But because of my prayers, which go before God’s throne, God now has something to work with. It’s not far fetched, someone having no one. I heard the very sad tale of a young man who aged out of the foster care system. He went directly into the service because he had nowhere else to go. When he returned from his tour of duty, he had no one to tell that he survived except for his case handler, so that is who he called.
???What shall I give???
2. At the beginning of this year I sent a letter to a minister that I glean a lot from stating my intention to provide monthly support out of my money. Mind you, I have no personal income; it’s all Bob. Do you know the LORD has been faithful to provide? You know now!
???Where shall I go???
3. The missionary husband gave this example: we go to the LORD basically shooting bullet prayers. “This person’s sick, please heal them. And I’ve got this bill, please take care of it. Thank You. Amen” and we walk away. We don’t wait for the answer, he continued. Maybe God would have us go to the sick and lay hands on them and they would be healed. Maybe the LORD would tell us to go to the grocery store and some person there would remember they owe us money and pay us back, bill taken care of.
The Great Commission is this: It is every believer asking all of these questions. Often. Then waiting for the LORD to answer.
That’s scary, isn’t it? To take the edge off, I’m going to share a wonderful experience with you.
When I was in my early 20s, my ex-fiance’s dad was hospitalized. He had raging diabetes and had toes removed. I had been praying for his salvation and was suddenly inspired to go to the hospital to see him. Did you catch that? This was my ex-fiance’s dad. I did not know who in the family would be there or how or if they would accept me, but I knew that I knew that I knew that was his day of salvation.
I readied myself, and with my heart banging off my ribs, I drove to the hospital alone, hung my mum’s clergy card from the mirror for I had parked in a clergy spot — hey, I knew what I was there for! — and walked purposefully to his hospital room.
As God would have it, his wife was the only one present at that time. Thankfully, we had been able to maintain a good relationship. Upon my arrival, she excused herself for refreshments and left us alone. It was so perfectly orchestrated.
Don had gone to church. He knew the “deal”, but he’d never accepted Jesus as his personal Savior. He did that day. His wife knew what had happened as soon as she walked into the room and saw his tear stained cheeks, glowing face, and bright smile. Despite his devastating ordeal, God injected peace and joy into the midst of him. As a reminder of his conversion, the LORD had directed me to take him a gift: a teddy bear, the cuddling size. You might think that’s an odd gift for a man, but the LORD was working on me, too. Was I willing to part with something precious to me? Here’s the story:
Years before that, when our families were smaller, mine and my cousins’ names were drawn for Christmas gifts. My Mum’s side of the family was inundated with boys. A couple of my aunts took the name exchange as an opportunity and relished the idea of purchasing a gift for a girl. One year, not this aunt. She gave a me a plain, navy blue sweatshirt and earrings that looked like BBs. I’ve never forgotten that. The same aunt drew my name the next year. I dreaded that part of the party when it came.
When my name was called and the gift was passed to me, I left the room to open it so that she would not see my anticipated disappointment. When I opened the package, there was my brown, stuffed bear. I was so happy! He remained on my bed and saw me through many a heartache. It pained me to give him away, my perfect for cuddling sized bear, but it seemed Don needed him more than I did. Thankfully, he received the bear without reservation. I went to visit Don when he got home from the hospital and where was the bear? It was beside the t.v. where it was a constant visual reminder of his encounter with Jesus.
There is much to do and time is growing short. Please join me and ask yourself these questions today: Whom shall I pray for? What shall I give? Where shall I go? Perhaps, like me, you have been waiting for a very long time for an answer to prayer. Maybe our blessing is wrapped up in His answer to one of these questions. Are we willing to make sacrifices in order to find out? I hope so. Let’s ask and wait and listen.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWQ4hitx7t4
Whom shall I pray for today? You. What shall I give today? This post. Where shall I go today? The internet. See, that wasn’t so bad, was it? đŸ™‚
God's Word Girl 