We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work. John 9:4 ESV
A Foundation of Faith
When I was a little girl, I loved to spend time with my grandfather. I remember climbing up in his lap and the smell of pipe tobacco. To this day I still love to smell the different flavors of pipe tobacco and it reminds me of him every time. He was a sweet Christian man who faithfully attended church and many times I attended with him and my grandmother. One day I told him that I wanted him to teach me to sing every song in the hymnal. That day he taught me two songs – At Calvary and Down At The Cross. My family was by no means a stable Christian family, but I had strong Christian parents and grandparents and their influence in my life is a part of my faith journey.
You may or may not have grown up with good influences in your life, but you still have a story to share. The most important thing we will ever do is to share our the Gospel with others. You may not think you have a great testimony to share because maybe you grew up in church. Maybe you didn’t have a major conversion experience where God saved you from the depths of drug addiction or alcoholism. That doesn’t matter because God can use you and your story no matter what it is.
God trusts us with spreading His Good News. He only allows us to be a part of His plan because He loves us. He sends us out to be His agents and to give the greatest gift to people that anyone could ever receive. God is not limited by anything, so His work will get done with our without us. He doesn’t need us, but He uses us and every experience we have in life can be used for His glory. Our lives will be so blessed and so much richer when we share with others what He has done in our lives.
Building relationshps with people is the best way to evangalize. Established friendships builds trust and opens doors. What we give people with the Gospel has eternal significance, - it changes their past, present, and future. It wipes out past shame and guilt. It breaks chains and frees them from the present sin they are entangled in and provides forgiveness for future sin, while securing an eternal place in Heaven.
The chorus to one of the songs my grandfather taught me says this:
Mercy there was great, and grace was free;’
Pardon there was multiplied to me;
There my burdened soul found liberty,
At Calvary.
Have you forgotten what it feels like to be desperate for hope? To need a light in the darkness? Mercy, pardon, and liberty are what Jesus bought for us with His blood, along with a new identity as co-heirs with Him. At Calvary we received the greatest gift we have ever received with the challenge to then give it away to others. Take the hope and light of Jesus to others today.
