Grains of Sand

“ The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor ” —Luke 4:18-19, NIV Nope, can’t do it. Must be strictly a job description for Jesus. They won’t let me preach ‘cause I’m a woman. The last time I tried to break someone out of jail—oh wait, that was someone trying to break me out of jail and it didn’t go well (another story for another time!) and I don’t have the gift of healing. I’M the working stiff so it’s ME someone has to release from oppression! Personally I’m not part of the inner circle and therefore unaware of the date that marks the Lord’s return so I can’t tell anyone about when He might favor us with His physical presence again (though that, from my perspective, is the best favour He could do me). So we’ll just read these verses and pass on by. We won’t? It’s spiritua...

This past Saturday I went to a "Matthew Party." As the name suggests, the host or hostess invites friends, family, colleagues who aren't believers to some event or activity for the purpose of opening the door of opportunity to speak for Christ. It's easy to cast a wishful eye beyond our frontiers, to indulge in the romanticism of faraway, exotic, places to witness for Christ. After all, Jesus said: "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation" —Mark 16:15. Who am I to argue—I'm thousands of miles away from my own country, doing that very thing. The truth is, the world sits right beside us, lives next door, and shops at the same markets that we do. It might not be so romantic or exotic. But there it is—close and convenient. No one came to Christ on Saturday. This was just the first little wedge in the door. But if we never knock at the door, we'll never know if that friend, neighbour, colleague is "at home" to the Lord.

Saying goodbye always seems to prompt important messages. As heaven prepared to receive its Lord once again, Jesus delivered a message of highest priority to His followers. " Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age " —Matthew 28:19, 20. "Go" Just cross the room, as Bill Hybels would say. None of us have to go far to find someone who doesn't know and love Jesus. Plant a seed for the Saviour. "Make disciples" Discipleship needs an object, a goal, a guru, a rabbi, a master, a God. We go with a message that leads us to a source. To make disciples we need to know well our message and the One who gave it to us. What God has done in our own lives is a powerful entry point. "Baptizing" The first step of obedience comes in the form of a public conf...