In the Gospel of John, Jesus heals a man who was blind from birth. Immediately the disciples ask, “Lord, who sinned — he or his parents that he was born blind?” But Jesus replies, “Neither he nor his parents sinned, but this happened so the glory of God could be revealed.”

This passage is such a tremendous picture of how God works. He wants His glory to be revealed in us through our weaknesses. The blind man was weak, yet God showed His power by giving Him sight. Can you imagine the story this man had to tell? When people saw him, they couldn’t believe he was the same man who had been blind only a few hours before. His transformation was that miraculous!

When the man told the religious leaders what happened, they tried to get more information about Jesus. Yet because the man barely knew Jesus, all he could say was, “One thing I do know. Once I was blind, but now I can see.”

Each one of us has our own stories of how God has healed us from weaknesses — whether it’s addiction, fear, depression, or whatever. Like the blind man, we can tell people, “I was once afraid; now I’m at peace.” Or, “Once I was an addict; now I’m sober.” What a powerful way to witness for Jesus Christ!

I met Steve on a recent trip to London, England. He approached me and said, “Mr. Palau, I committed my life to Jesus during your festival to London 23 years ago.” Then Steve told me his story.

Since he didn’t grow up in church, Steve knew very little about God. He began serving in the Royal British Forces in his early 20s. There, he struggled with severe bouts of anxiety and depression, which led him to heavy drinking binges. In Steve’s words, he was one inch away from becoming an alcoholic.

Steve was searching for answers in various religions, when a friend invited him to hear me speak at Wembley Stadium in London. Steve agreed to go. That night he heard the Good News Gospel, and realized what he needed in his life wasn’t religion, but a relationship with Jesus.

When I gave the invitation, Steve made a commitment to follow Jesus Christ as His Lord and Savior. Today, Steve is married to a wonderful Christian woman, and they are raising their three sons in the ways of God.

Think about where Steve might be today if his friend hadn’t invited him to our festival. Ephesians 5:15 reminds us: “Be careful how you live, not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity.”

We need to remember to be intentional about inviting our friends to hear a clear presentation of the Gospel. It may be just what they need to hear

Do you desire for God to use you in powerful ways for His Kingdom? In order for this to happen, you can’t escape an essential element: having constant spiritual intimacy with the Lord.

A great picture of this is in the Gospel of Matthew, where we read about the transfiguration. You remember — The Lord takes Peter, James, and John up to the mountain where Jesus is transfigured into His true state of glory.

Peter gets so excited, he just starts talking. But God says, “Peter, this is my beloved Son. Listen to Him.” Through this amazing story, we see that intimacy comes from spending time with God and listening to His Son.

The Lord chose Peter, James, and John to experience that closeness for a special purpose. After they came down from the mountain, they were different men. They went on to greatly influence their generation, and future generations, for the purposes of God.

Just as God the Father exhorted the disciples to listen to Jesus, He says the same thing to us: “Listen to me,” He says. “I’ve got so much to tell you. I want to teach you. I want to build you up. I want to use you in a mighty way in this generation.”

When we have that kind of closeness with the Lord, we can’t help but draw people to His heart.

There was a humble British maid who lived in the early 1900s. Her name was Gladys Aylward. She was uneducated but she believed that God had called her to China. Yet because she wasn’t educated, no mission society would send her.

But Gladys was tenacious and she finally found a way to get to China without the support of a missionary agency. Finally, with a few coins in her pocket and a one-way train ticket across Europe and Russia, she said good-bye to her family, and she set out to go to China.

Once in China, Gladys shared the Good News wherever, and however, she could. First, she began working at an inn and told Bible stories to the travelers who stayed there.

She later started adopting orphans, and saved scores of boys and girls when World War II broke out in China. At one point, she walked for 12 days with 100 orphans to escape the bombing of her city. She led them to safety, and then collapsed with Typhoid fever.

Gladys later wrote, “My heart is full of praise that one so insignificant, uneducated, and ordinary in every way could be used to His glory…” First Samuel 16:7 says “Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

God can use you (look, he can use me!) so, whatever your shortcomings, lacks, failures, or fears may be, He will use you. He has chosen you to spread the Good News to your world. So make the most of it.