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Wherever, Whatever, Whenever . . .
By Jenny | February 12, 2006
Happy Sunday, everyone! This weekend was our church’s Missions Festival, “Wherever, Whatever, Whenever,” and it was wonderful! Friday night there was a banquet with foods from around the world and many guest missionaries. Saturday morning was a Senior Adult Brunch, and today just a great day of worship with an emphasis on missions. Nathan and I were both challenged to pray more diligently for missions, to increase our giving to missions, and to continue praying for God to show us where He would have us to serve in our future ministry. It was exciting to hear from our guest speaker, Dr. Ron Cline, and the many missionaries from around the world. Our prayer continues to be, “Lord, wherever, whatever, whenever….here we are, send us.” One very practical thing that Dr. Cline challenged each of us to do is to simply share with someone this week that God loves them. So first I would like to remind all of you who read this that the sovereign God of the universe loves you personally and passionately and gave His Son, Jesus Christ, to die for you. I also wanted to share a true story that Dr. Cline told us. Several years ago he had the opportunity to speak in a church in Wisconsin. On a Monday evening, he gave the same challenge to that congregation to share the good news that “God loves you” with someone that week. In one pew, a man immediately felt God laying it upon his heart to share with his brother that God loved him. For years this man (Man #1) had been a Christian, but he had never told his brother of God’s love. In another pew a man (Man #2) told God that he would share this message with the first person he would see the next day that was not a part of his family. In yet another pew, another man (Man #3) saw the face of his barber and committed to tell the barber “God loves you” the next day at his hair appointment. So that evening, Man #1 picked up the phone to call his brother. He hesitated, knowing that Monday Night Football was on, and his brother would likely be watching the game. But, like many of us do, he felt the gentle but firm prodding of the Holy Spirit to make the call. He picked up the phone and dialed his brother. When his brother answered, Man #1 could hear the game in the background. He panicked and said, “Hey, I just wanted to tell you that I love you…and God loves you, too.” And he hung up. On Tuesday morning, Man #2 took his trash out to the curb to be picked up. He saw his neighbor pulling out of his driveway to head to work. This was the first non-family member he had seen today, so he walked over and motioned for his neighbor to roll his window down. Before he lost the nerve, he blurted out, “God loves you,” and turned around and walked back to his own car. You can probably guess by now that this man, Man #1’s brother and Man #2’s neighbor, was also Man #3’s barber. And as he was minding his own business, cutting Man #3’s hair that morning, Man #3 blurted out, “God loves you.” The barber had had enough! He spun the chair around and faced the man. “What did you just say?” he asked. “God loves you,” Man #3 replied. Dr. Cline shared with us the joy he had on Tuesday evening meeting Man #1, Man #2, Man #3, and the new believer. Man #3 had the privilege of leading his barber to Christ. What a great story! It was a good reminder that we never know what seeds we may plant when we share three simple words with someone. So tonight, I am thankful that God loves me. If you have any questions about God’s love for you, click here. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. John 3:16
Topics: Bible Topics, Church |