LifeLink Devotions

Friday, April 28, 2023

One sunny spring day a wealthy man went into a bank owned by his long-time friend to begin the process of purchasing a new home. He sat at a small table and filled out all the necessary financial statements and application forms. When done, he handed the paperwork to the administrative assistant behind the desk. He was told that the loan officers would review his information and get back to him within a few days.

When the phone call came three days later, it was his friend who called. The bank owner was puzzled. He asked his friend to explain why he had not listed any assets on his application. “How do you expect to get a loan for this huge mansion you want to purchase when you state that you own nothing? I’ve known you for a long time, and I can see on your credit report that you are extremely wealthy. Why have you chosen to not list anything as a personal asset?”

“Oh, that’s easy to answer,” said the wealthy applicant. “I don’t own anything. It’s all on loan to me. By your standards it’s mine, but not by God’s standards. Everything I have is His asset, not mine.”

I thought of this story this morning as I was reading an email I received from a friend who shared what God was teaching him in his personal devotions. With his permission, I share his thoughts with you.

“As I was reading a devotional this morning, the opening reading was Psalm 24;1-2 which basically says that it’s all God’s. This led to Haggai 2:8 and Psalm 50:10 saying that all money and everything on the face of the earth is His. What especially made me stop was a comparison. ‘Since God consistently reiterates that He is the exclusive owner of all creation, we should respond appropriately when using His resources–including money. In other words, we should have exactly the same response as when using something that belongs to our neighbors: ask permission to use it; honor the owner’s instructions and do as he has designated; take no unnecessary risks; handle it the way we would want others to handle one of our possessions; and return it in a timely manner, preferably in better condition or more plentiful than before. And then say “Thank you.”

Well that sure hit me like a ton of bricks. I immediately went to my garage and made sure I didn’t have anything of my neighbor’s that I hadn’t returned. But seriously, I did immediately begin thinking about what I claim to own and possess, and I discovered I was guilty of taking ownership of what had not been deeded to me. You see, it’s all on loan. So, here’s my plan – actually it’s God’s plan that I’m choosing to make mine:

• I hereby declare that I own nothing, and that everything currently at my disposal is God’s, and He has assigned it to me to use solely for His purpose.
• As the Owner of all I have, He can ask for anything He wants at any time, and I will cheerfully give it to Him. This includes people as well as possessions.
• If I think I can use it in some way, I will ask God for permission to do it first, and wait for His response before taking action.
• I will not put His property at risk hoping to gain more for myself.
• I will not hide His property to preserve it, but will put it to use for the current needs of the Kingdom.
• I will invest His resources in ways that bring an abundance of eternal treasures. I will not invest in building earthly security.
• I will learn to say “Thank You” more consistently, and seek to minimize my complaining that He hasn’t given me enough.

Remember, whatever you claim to own actually owns you.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Thursday, April 27, 2023

I have a pocketful of promises. At least I believe they are promises, and because of that I use them. I put coins in a vending machine because of the promise of a thirst-quencher or belly-enhancer. I put green-colored paper into the hands of a cash-register operator in exchange for the product I have determined is essential to my life. I slide a plastic card through an electronic device when I don’t have any green-colored paper and I expect the same result. I pull out a cylindrical device with a clicky top to make a promise to pay later with the promise of a signature. I hand a colored punch card to the clerk who makes a promise with a hole to give me something free later. My pockets are full of promises.

In one pocket of my coat, I carry a dozen promises, all attached to a steel ring. One promise opens my office door. One promise opens my house. Other promises open a variety of cabinets and files and doors. When I pull them out of my pocket and insert the appropriate promise into the matching slot, things that had been previously inaccessible are suddenly fully available.

Once I had trouble with a promise in my pocket. It was a small black plastic promise with three buttons on it. Each button is supposed to perform a function on my vehicle. Every time I would exit my car, shut the door and push the button that promises to lock the doors, nothing happened. I push the promise again, and nothing happens. I slowly move to a different location on the outside of the vehicle and push the promise again, and maybe it will work. Some days I just go inside and leave the car unlocked because the promise was never fulfilled. Then there are days like this morning that the promise was fulfilled at the first request.

It can be embarrassing standing in the parking lot pointing a promise at the car while moving around pushing the button repeatedly. Unfulfilled promises are shameful. They destroy hope. My pocket is full of promises that are consistently fulfilled, but the one promise that isn’t seems to dominate my thoughts and affects the quality of my life (or at least I choose to believe it does).

None of the above is true of God’s promises.

Psalm 119:116  “Uphold me according to your promise, that I may live, and let me not be put to shame in my hope!”

Never once has one of His promises failed – at least not from His perspective. From my vantage point things don’t happen like they should. I want to be fulfilled according to my desires. I want to be upheld according to my application of the promise. Therein lies the problem. Putting God’s promises into our context and timeframe is like putting the wrong key into the lock and never gaining access to the previously unavailable. The Psalmist reminds us of this truth with the words, “Uphold me according to your promise.”

God’s promises are like the coins and currency we carry. Read these encouraging words from Charles Spurgeon:

“Nothing pleases our Lord better than to see His promises put in circulation; He loves to see His children bring them up to Him, and say, “Lord, do as Thou hast said.” We glorify God when we plead His promises. Do you think that God will be any the poorer for giving you the riches He has promised? Do you dream that He will be any the less holy for giving holiness to you? Do you imagine He will be any the less pure for washing you from your sins? Our heavenly Banker delights to cash His own notes. Never let the promise rust. Think not that God will be troubled by reminding Him of His promises. He loves to hear the loud outcries of needy souls. It is His delight to bestow favors. He is more ready to hear than you are to ask. The sun is not weary of shining, nor the fountain of flowing. It is God’s nature to keep His promises; therefore go at once to the throne.”

Follower of Christ, your pocket is full of promises, and they all fit perfectly into the doorway of the heart of God. All that has been previously inaccessible is now fully available, and never will the promise be unfulfilled. Point the promise directly at God and push the button. It will open God’s heart every time.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Wednesday, April 26, 2023

I was actually chilly. I was wearing only a short-sleeved shirt because I had given my fleece jacket to someone who had forgotten to bring one. We were high up on the top of a mountain ridge and the temperature had dropped from 95 degrees in the valley to around 65 degrees at the top. Plus, the wind was blowing.  We were there to spend the night at a resort owned by the mayor of that area who was a Christian and a friend of the ECOFI Ministry. We sat out on the edge of the cliff at a table that hung over the drop off.  We laughed, we sang, we prayed, and we shivered.

As we talked, I was informed that just down the road, on the top of the ridge, was a prayer retreat for a false prophet. He is the self-proclaimed Filipino messiah, calling himself the appointed and anointed son of God. He has millions of followers and has raked in millions of dollars, taking advantage of people’s itching ears for self-validation. He is also currently under investigation by the United States Justice Department for human trafficking.

As we talked, I was reminded of the Old Testament prophet who described such false prophets. In Jeremiah chapter fourteen, the Lord has just declared judgment upon the people because of their idolatry. God said he would destroy them with sword and famine. But in the public arena, Jeremiah is hearing a different message from those who pretend to be messengers from God.

Jeremiah said to the Lord, “Ah, Lord God, behold, the prophets say to them, ‘You shall not see the sword, nor shall you have famine, but I will give you assured peace in this place.’ ”And the Lord said to me: “The prophets are prophesying lies in my name. I did not send them, nor did I command them or speak to them. They are prophesying to you a lying vision, worthless divination, and the deceit of their own minds.Therefore, thus says the Lord concerning the prophets who prophesy in my name although I did not send them, and who say, ‘Sword and famine shall not come upon this land’: By sword and famine those prophets shall be consumed.And the people to whom they prophesy shall be cast out in the streets of Jerusalem, victims of famine and sword, with none to bury them—them, their wives, their sons, and their daughters. For I will pour out their evil upon them.”

The world is filled with people pretending to be pastors, evangelists, preachers, and prophets. They are fulfilling the warning of the Apostle Peter when he wrote, “there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of truth will be blasphemed. And in their greed they will exploit you with false words. Their condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.” (2 Pe 2:1–3)

My friends, it chills me to think of the number of people who think they are safe in Christ while they are being deceived by false teachers. We must pray every day for the discernment of the Holy Spirit so we do not get suckered into believing false teachers just because they appeal to our emotions, pride, and sensuality. The same condemnation and destruction promised to the false prophets in Jeremiah’s day is not idle nor asleep. It is coming upon all such teachers, and upon all those who follow them. And that’s a chilling thought.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Tuesday, April 25, 2023

As we travelled out into the mountain regions of Mindanao, I was reminded of my first trip to the Philippines thirty-two years earlier. I was one of the support staff to the ministry founder and director Keith Williams. As we approached one of the villages, he turned to me and asked me to preach. I agreed, but my mind raced to figure out what the Lord would have me say. Then Dr. Williams said this. “Just encourage them so they endure what’s ahead.”

Now, as we travelled to remote areas of poverty and hardship, I was prepared to encourage them to endure. Prior to my arrival I had been praying and seeking the Lord, and I was led to these verses written by the Apostle Paul:

Romans 15:5–7 “May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.”

Look how God is described. He is the God of endurance and encouragement. I was struck with the simple truth that I am not responsible for anyone’s endurance or encouragement. Oh sure, I am commanded by Jesus to be an encourager, but the best encouragement for anyone is to introduce them to the God of endurance and encouragement.

It is so easy for us in our human nature to look to others for the things that can ultimately only be supplied by God through Jesus Christ. Why does our emotional state depend so much on the circumstances of life? Why do we get tossed about so easily on the waves of human emotions just because other people aren’t meeting our expectations? Why are we living in such disharmony with people when the God of endurance and encouragement grants us the privilege of living in harmony with others?

The answer is simple yet deeply convicting. It’s because we are not living in accord with Christ Jesus. We are not focused on the unity we have in Jesus, but rather we are focused on bringing everyone into agreement with our perspective.

The God of endurance and encouragement has granted us a solution to relational conflict. When we individually live in accord with Jesus Christ, we will with one voice glorify God. When we are at odds with others, and our endurance is coming to an end, we have two choices. We can either hunker down in the foxhole of our own pride and preferences and push people away, or we can rise up in the endurance and encouragement of God and welcome one another just as Christ has welcomed us.

The choice is yours. Where will you turn for encouragement and endurance? To people? To solving life’s problems? To making sure you are right? Or will you humble yourself and turn to Jesus and bring your life into agreement with His character and principles. I choose God, because God is the only perfect source of endurance and encouragement.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Monday, April 24, 2023

In 1951 my parents had just gotten married and were preparing to go to the Philippines as missionaries. Unfortunately, they never went due to a health issue my mom developed. Instead they became missionaries with the American Sunday School Union and planted churches in rural Pennsylvania.

In 1980 I became involved with the Philippine ministry. But I never knew about my parents’ plans to serve there until 1991 when I was planning my first trip to Davao City. With tears in her eyes my mom told me how the Lord was fulfilling her dreams through me. For 43 years I’ve developed a deep love for the Filipino people, and been blessed with numerous lifelong friendships and ministry opportunities. And based on something that happened on this last trip, I don’t think it’s done.

As I travelled through the mountain regions of Mindanao, the Field Supervisor of the ministry told me something that brought tears of joy to my eyes. I was overwhelmed with humility and honor all at once. I could not verbally express the gratitude I was experiencing in my soul.

“Pastor John, we want to ordain you as an ECOFI pastor so you are one of us,” he said.

I literally had to ask him to repeat it because I couldn’t believe I had heard correctly. As he said it again my tears flowed uncontrollably. The Lord Jesus was choosing to bestow on me an honor I could never have dreamed of having in this life. He explained that I would be considered an official partner in the ministry, with full ministry rights and privileges. It was an honor I cannot explain. It was as if the Lord Himself was reaching down and thanking me for 43 years of faithful service and sacrifice.

When we returned from our mountain ministry adventures, I was asked to submit all my doctrinal paperwork to the ordination council. My wife was able to find it in my files and send it to me. On Wednesday morning I was called in for an interview. I was impressed with the integrity of their ordination system. Then, that evening, during the Pastor’s Conference, after the message, I was called forward along with four other Filipino pastors. We knelt in front of the ECOFI leadership as they laid hands on us and prayed over us, commissioning us for lifelong ministry as an ECOFI Pastor and leader.

Then came another surprise. They asked me and the American Director of the Ministry, Dr. Hank Roso, to kneel in front of them as they anointed our heads with oil and prayed over us. In this symbolic anointing they declared that we were called to the highest positions of leadership in the ministry and were granted the Lord’s commission of appointing and anointing others for their leadership.

It was then explained to me that the next night at the Pastor’s Conference we would have the privilege of anointing and praying for the Filipino Director and the district supervisors. They would then join us as we anointed the heads of all the pastors and pastoras who were at the conference – almost 400 of them. It was an amazing night as we saw the work of Jesus in their hearts as they surrendered to the call of their Lord to be devoted to the Gospel ministry. It was a time of overwhelming spiritual renewal and commitment.

I don’t know how to fully express to you what this all meant to me. But I want to ask you something. Are you serving the Lord so faithfully and sacrificially that He is preparing an honor for you, whether in this life or in His presence? Is your passion for the Gospel so powerful in your life that you are ready and willing to go wherever He directs you to whomever He leads you and courageously tell others about the saving love of Jesus?

I hope so. There is nothing more fulfilling in life than to be honored by the Lord.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Friday, April 21, 2023

It made me very uncomfortable. My flesh wanted to enjoy the moment, but my spirit was unsettled. As I was being introduced to speak the MC said, “Here is a great man of God.” I cringed. I quickly prayed to ask the humility of Christ to be seen in me.

As I stood to speak, the introduction of my message instantly changed in my mind. I looked out over that crowd of people and saw pastors, pastoras, college students, and church workers who were deserving of true honor before the Lord. Many came from remote places. Many lived in places with no running water, no sanitary systems, no air conditioning, no showers or bathtubs, and no source of income. Yet here they were, gathered as faithful servants of King Jesus, longing to be enriched and encouraged to go back to those places and carry on the commission of Jesus Christ to share the Gospel with everyone.

These are the true heroes of the faith. People who have sacrificed all the things we consider entitlements so that Jesus Christ can save more souls. I told them they were great people of God and that I was nothing compared to them.

We all have the tendency to look for people who are greater than us so they can influence us. It is especially true in the church. We are constantly looking for the next great preacher or author who can influence us. We quickly follow them and call them great. We even label our belief system with their name. Even pastors do it by using quotes from them in their sermons to validate the truth they are teaching. Why do we do that? The Bible alone is our validation of truth. It’s not wrong to quote what others have said, but why do we hold those people in high regard just because they seem to have a better grasp on the truth than we do?

Instead of calling them great, why not become great yourself? Study God’s word. Obey God’s word. Grow in your own knowledge of God through the Word. The focus of all Bible studies, life groups, and church services should be the study of God’s word, using other resources only as an assistant. Unfortunately, we have become dependent on what other authors have written rather than dependent on the Author Himself.

I pray that every person who heard me preach that day was drawn to the Scriptures as their source of all life and activity. I believe they already were, because their sacrifice for the Gospel was evident. When the Gospel has its guaranteed affect on us, then we are compelled to serve King Jesus. (Seems I heard a pastor preach on Compelled recently.)  Are you compelled to serve Jesus at all cost, or is He just an add-on to your own pursuits and goals.

I was honored to preach to the faithful servants of Jesus in the Philippines. But I am no more a great man of God than they are. When Jesus Christ takes up residence in a person’s life in the power and presence of the Holy Spirit, then that person is great in the eyes of God. Now it is up to each one of us to determine how great we will allow God to be in us, and that requires constant study of God in His Word. Get started today. Grab your Bible and read it before you do anything else. May I suggest you start with First John.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Thursday, April 20, 2023

Many people use a variety of excuses to justify a subdued attitude when the church gathers to worship Jesus. Some use their personality as an excuse. Some claim their upbringing as validation. Some even try to use Scripture to justify maintaining a quiet and respectful demeaner in worship. However, with no apologies for any offense you may take, all such excuses and justifications are invalid when the command of Scripture negates them all.

Psalm 70:4 “May all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you!”

Now before you start justifying your excuses based on your definitions of rejoicing and gladness that come from within the parameters of your personality and experiences, let’s see what the words mean in their original usage.

Rejoice – A Hebrew verb meaning to rejoice; to exalt; to be glad. It is a verb that indicates great rejoicing and jubilant celebration.

Glad – A verb meaning to rejoice; to be joyful, to be glad; to gloat. It describes a state and agitation of rejoicing, of being happy.

For the 18 days I was in the Philippines, I observed and participated in agitated rejoicing and jubilant celebration. I wish we Americans would learn to let loose a little. I’m not talking about wild confusion, but I am ready for every follower of Christ to learn to really rejoice in the Lord. And don’t try to say that in your heart you are rejoicing when there is no physical proof that you are. The definition of the Hebrew word goes on and states that rejoicing “makes others rejoice and to be glad.” Our quiet, respectful, non-emotional definition of worship is not the Biblical norm. There is a place for quiet worship, just as there is a command for agitated rejoicing. And we are to do it in such a way that others around us are stimulated to rejoice.

I know I have stepped on some toes today. I wish I was doing it while excitedly rejoicing before the Lord, like stepping on your toes when dancing. If you are sensing pain in your toes, maybe it’s because they are too stationary. Maybe if you moved them a little while you worshiped they wouldn’t get stepped on. But your toes are not the real issue…your heart is. I have never, and I really mean never, met a person without emotion. I have also never met a person who doesn’t express their emotion. I have seen the most gentle and quiet people become loud and expressive while they gloat over things that obviously have deep meaning to them. So why, why, why do those same people seem so emotionless and inactive when worshiping Jesus whom they claim to love more than anything? It’s a heart issue.

I am so thankful for my Filipino friends, who have taught me to look only at Jesus during worship, and from my heart rejoice with physical expressions of love, joy, and gratitude. I shouted. I cried. I raised my hands. I danced. I joined in jubilant celebration of King Jesus because I love him more than any traditions or definitions.

I pray that someday soon your personal preferences and the practices of your particular church that restrict jubilant celebration and agitated rejoicing will be forever transformed into heavenly praise and worship. May it start with you this Sunday.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Wednesday, April 19, 2023

How many things do you require in your life to be joyful?

When I arrived in the Philippines, I was overwhelmed with a sense of contentment that I don’t often experience here in America. My first full day was spent visiting the Bible College and meeting students who were preparing for their graduation. When I arrived on the campus, I was struck by two things: the new features that had been added, and the decay that was taking place. The tropical climate of humidity and the invasion of termites was causing unfortunate deterioration.

As I walked around the campus, I was still in my American mindset. I made note of things that needed repair. I saw things that I had personally worked on that were now no longer functional. I wondered why there wasn’t more effort put forth to take care of things and keep them nice. American thinking that turned to prideful conclusions.

As we approached the back of the campus, I met my first students. Three young women who were sweeping the grounds with hand-made straw brooms. They were smiling and singing. These girls had come to the Bible college to train to serve their King. They lived together in a dorm with now real possessions of their own. They trusted in the Lord to provide sponsors for their room and board as they had no resources of their own. They told me of many days they would go hungry as there was no money for food. They did their laundry by hand in an old concrete trough behind the dorm. Their living conditions would be unacceptable to any one of us.

Yet here they were, preparing the campus for a graduation ceremony in two days, followed by a pastor’s conference with over 400 attendees, many of whom would invade their dorm space just for a place to sleep. And while they swept, they sang songs of praise to King Jesus. The answer to most questions I asked them started with the words, “By the grace of God.” These young servants of Jesus understood that we require nothing more than the grace of God to be filled with joy.

What a lesson I learned that first day. What a challenge to my American way of thinking. What an eye-opener to my personal sense of entitlement.

So, I ask you again, how many things do you require in your life to be joyful?

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Tuesday, April 18, 2023

I have learned over the years that when you fly internationally you must expect delays. Flexibility and patience are required personal attributes.

When I arrived at the Manila airport terminal for my flight to Davao City, everything was going smoothly. I quickly passed through security and made my way to the gate where my flight was on schedule. Over the loudspeaker I heard a woman’s voice informing people that another flight had been delayed, and they all needed to move to a new gate to access a different plane. A surge of people moved past me as they hurried to their new location. Two more times this happened in the first 45 minutes I was there.

Then I heard the announcement about my flight. It was now delayed, and it would be loading a different plane at a different gate.  I calmly got up from my seat and made my way to the new gate location. Thirty minutes later another announcement got my attention. The original plane that had been delayed had arrived and would be prepared for our flight, but we needed to move back to the original gate.

When I arrived at that gate, I noticed a man speaking loudly and forcefully to one of the gate agents. He was very upset. When he was done, he came and stood near where I was seated. I spoke to Jesus about him and asked the Lord to calm his spirit. I then got up and went and stood next to him and started a conversation about delays.

I listened to him as he emotionally described the ineptitude of this airline and the reputation they have for delays. He told me how he spoke to the agent demanding compensation for his lost time. His request was refused. He was angry. After telling me all the details, he was motivated to go and speak with the agent again, so he left me.

When he returned, I asked him if anything had changed. “Nope! It will still be another 30 minutes and they don’t care how that makes us feel,” he said. I asked him what he did for a living and why he was flying to Davao. He said he was from the Untied States and was in the Navy. His mother lived in Davao and was very ill. He had been granted a one-week leave to visit her. He was very emotional because it felt like he was wasting time in an airport that could have been spent with her.

I can’t remember all the words I said to him at that moment, but they had a calming effect on him. I told him who I was and asked him if I could pray for him. He agreed. His heart instantly softened as I put my hand on his shoulder and I addressed King Jesus in my prayer, When I was done, he hugged me, apologized for his language and his anger, and thanked me for reaching out to help him get a better perspective on the situation.

Later, when we boarded the plane, I was already in my seat when he passed by. He looked down at me, put his hand on my shoulder, and smiled while he said thanks.

Dear friends, every day you cross paths with people who are going through untold difficulties in their lives. Our tendency is to avoid them when Jesus wants us to embrace them. We would rather criticize their behavior rather than compassionately find out how we could help. And on that day in the airport, if I had not been flexible and patient, I would have been that Navy man, and been unable to see his need because I was so focused on myself.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotions

Monday, April 17, 2023

Recently I returned from an 18-day trip to the Philippines to spend time in ministry with ECOFII (Evangelical Christian Outreach Foundation International Incorporated), a network of over 300 churches and two Bible colleges on the Islands of Mindanao and Balut. I have been involved in that ministry for over 40 years and have travelled there on five different occasions. Every time I go, I leave a little more of my heart with the people.

Over the next few days, I want to share some lessons I learned from the Lord on this recent trip. Lesson number one was taught to me on the first day of my arrival in Manila. My plane arrived late, and by the time I cleared customs and headed to the doors to catch a taxi to the hotel it was after midnight, and I was exhausted. I told the taxi driver my destination as he loaded my bags into the trunk of the car, and I got in the front seat of the car.

When the driver entered the car, I was physically energized by the Holy Spirit. I felt it. I knew I was supposed to talk to him as he drove and watch the Holy Spirit open a door for the Gospel. And that’s exactly what happened.

He told me about his family, who lived four hours away. He saw them only one weekend a month so that he could stay in Manila and support them by driving a taxi. He immediately opened his heart and shared the personal struggles of that schedule. Then he asked me what I was in the Philippines to do. I told him I was a pastor there to do ministry. A tear came to his eye. He asked if I had any advice for him.

I said no. NOT!!! I immediately asked him what he knew about Jesus. He told me that he believed in Jesus but for the past seven years he had not worshipped Him. I clarified that by asking if he meant he had not been to church. He said he hadn’t, but that’s not what he meant. He meant he was not seeking Jesus and didn’t worship Him. I asked what he did worship, and I saw more tears. I was praying that he was still able to see the road. He said he couldn’t describe it in English, but the concern for making money for his family and yet being separated from them was so emotionally demanding on him that he could only think about himself and how to survive.

WOW. What transparency. The cares of life are so emotionally demanding that we begin to think only about ourselves and fail to worship God. He was describing idolatry, and he knew it.

Does that describe you? What are you worshiping? What idols do you have that have so taken over the demands of life that you have sacrificed your worship of Jesus Christ?

We arrived at the hotel moments later. As he unloaded my bags from the trunk, I reached out my hand to pay him and asked if I could pray for Him. He said yes. There, in front of the security guards at the hotel entrance, I prayed for this young man to be overwhelmed with the love of Jesus who died for him. I requoted the Bible verses I had shared with him in the cab. I spoke God’s truth into His life – the truth of a loving and forgiving God who stands with His arms open to welcome him home if He will choose to worship Jesus again. When I said Amen, he hugged me and said thank-you, I needed this. God blessed me with you as my rider tonight.

Every day God puts people in our path that have been prepared by the Holy Spirit to hear the Gospel. No matter how tired you are, or emotionally drained, or distracted by the demands of life, you can have the energy of the Holy Spirit to accomplish the commission of Christ to share the Gospel. It all depends on what or Who you love the most.

Pastor John