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Be Patient!

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If youve had the joy of leading someone to faith in Jesus Christ, you know its one of the most thrilling experiences on earth! Knowing that another soul has entered into the Kingdom of God gives you an excitement that is beyond words! And you can begin encouraging this new believer in their faith. Now, as you begin the discipleship process, its so important to practice patience. Often we want to see someones bad habits changed overnight. We get discouraged when a new believer isnt as spiritually mature as we think they should be. But even though its important to encourage a new child of God to grow, its also important to practice patience. The reality is that it takes each of us time to mature in the Lord. I accepted the Lord as my Savior as a 12 year old boy. And even though it was a very real commitment, I didnt really begin living the Christian life in its fullness until I was 17. You see, its Gods Holy Spirit that brings the growth, not you or me. In First Corinthians 3:6 Paul says, “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow.” So yes, keep encouraging and praying for your friend. But also, let them learn, and grow, in Gods perfect timing.

The Lord’s Patience

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God our Father would love for everyone to believe in Jesus Christ and have eternal life. Thats His deepest desire. And Gods plan for saving souls is to enlist us Christians to be His hands, feet, and voice – lovingly drawing people to repentance and faith in Jesus. Then, God will send Jesus back to earth, bringing all believers up to Heaven with Him.

But sometimes, as year after year passes, the Lords return can seem so far away. We may feel that we have all the time in the world to share our faith. So it becomes easy to put off witnessing, until a more “convenient” time, (which rarely comes, by the way). But the Lord will come back, as He has promised. And it could be any day.

II Peter 3 says, “The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise … He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”

Our Lords patience means salvation! He is waiting to return until as many people as possible come into the Kingdom. You and I are His messengers – His ambassadors — to preach the Good News to a desperate and dying world.

Will you answer His call? Its an exciting way to live, thats for sure!

Respectful Rebuking

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I once met a gypsy who was into psychic reading. But, he said, he knew it was wrong. “How do you know that?” I asked. He said a man recently approached him and said, “You know, you are sinning by doing these readings.” It really shook this gypsys conscience. And he thought, “Wow, I think that guys right.”

Using Scripture, I explained to this man why psychic involvement and witchcraft are sinful. He began to understand that through a relationship with Jesus Christ, he could be forgiven. It was thrilling to pray and lead this gypsy to the Lord! But think about it: The catalyst to his conversion was a stranger who blatantly told him that he was sinning. Can you imagine?

No doubt, its hard to confront someone like that. Its definitely not politically correct. Yet many times, if we lovingly reproach someone, it can pierce their conscience. Second Timothy reminds us to “correct, rebuke and encourage, with great patience and careful instruction.”

Allow God to help you share His awesome truth with a friend this week. A strong, but loving, word of exhortation may be the bridge that links their heart to the cross of Jesus Christ.

Opposites Clash

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The saying goes that “opposites attract.” While that may be true in some aspects of male/female relationships, it does not apply in the ultimate fight of good against evil. In the battle between God and Satan, opposites definitely do NOT attract. They clash.

The Bible says that the acts of our sinful nature are obvious. They include sexual immorality, impurity, idolatry, hatred, discord, jealousy, envy, and the like. These are weapons Satan uses to perpetuate his evil agenda in our world. Now consider the fruits of the Holy Spirit. The Bible defines them as “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.”

Christians are on Gods side in the spiritual battle. Our weapons are completely contrary to Satans. They clash with the enemys weapons. So I ask you today: Which weapons are you using? If you indulge your sinful nature day in and day out, you are not using the weapons from the Lord, for sure. And that means you are NOT a threat to the enemy!

Today, may you choose to stand boldly as Gods soldier, as Gods warrior, in the battle against evil. Engage in the spiritual battle for eternal souls. Because, the battle is real, the battle is on – its going on incessantly – and you and I are Gods servants to reach out to those who need Jesus. So, lets do it!

Choose to Rejoice

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Years ago I was listening to a woman on the radio program. She was reading Galatians 5 where it says, “The fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control. Against such things there is no law.”

Then this woman said, “You know, there is no law against too much love. There is no law against too much joy… and so on and so on.”

That simple thought really struck me. Think about that for a moment – there is no law against too much joy! We are told by the Lord to rejoice. Even in bad times, the potential for joy is there, because the Spirit of God is within us.

Philippians 4 says, “Rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I say, rejoice!” It’s a choice, yes! Sometimes it’s a difficult choice, but we can rejoice because the blessed Holy Spirit, who produces joy, lives within us.

So, what does this have to do with evangelism? Everything! A joyful spirit is what makes followers of Jesus stand out from the rest of the crowd.

As you and I choose to rejoice ‘always,’ no matter what the circumstances, we are setting ourselves apart. We are letting the light of Christ, the joy of Christ, shine through our situation. By choosing to rejoice, we can be powerful witnesses to those in need of the Savior’s joy.