The testimony of a changed life

                                              The testimony of a changed life

I suppose if we were to ask around, if we were to take a survey of the leaders in many of our churches today, the need they expressed would find common ground. Oh, there may be some divergence from the mainstream but for the most part the need would be the same. Most would agree we need stronger preachers. We need men of God who are not afraid to stand up and proclaim the Word of God without reservation, without watering it down to make it more palatable to the general population. We need pulpits filled with the power of the Holy Spirit of God.

I do not disagree with the need for Spirit filled men in the pulpit. I simply disagree with the notion that it would somehow heal what is wrong in our churches. Before one can answer the question of what is needed one must assess the need. And to me the need is simple, getting the gospel to the lost.

We seem to have come to the place in the local church where we believe that the pulpit is the evangelistic arm of the church. We host programs and seminars designed to bring people into the building so that we can preach to them and see them saved. But is that the purpose of the pulpit?

Forty (some) years ago I was unsaved. I had recently graduated from high school and was living a rather pointless life. I was lost but I didn’t understand my condition. I went to church…as often as my mother forced me to. And so, as a lost individual I would attend church, daydream in the pew, sing the hymns (off key) and go home. Our church, I learned much later, had a very good preacher and a loving pastor. So, why didn’t I hear the message of salvation? Why wasn’t I moved to repent and be born again? If the problem is in the pulpit, then I should have been saved in that church. Because the pulpit in that church had a godly pastor.

I dated a young lady during this same period of time who was also unsaved. We only dated for a brief time but I admired her very much. She was a good person, unsaved, but a good person. We broke up and she went on with life and I continued with my life as well.

About a year or so later, as God would have it, her sister and my brother were to be married. It was this event that brought us together again. When I saw her again, I had hope that we might get back together. I looked for an opportunity to be alone with her. At the close of one evening of wedding planning I discovered she needed a ride home. “Finally,” I thought to myself, my opportunity was there. She accepted my offer to drive her home. Plans began to form in my mind, ways to win her back.

What I did not see was that none of this was by accident. This was God’s plan. Instead of a pulpit with a mighty preacher He gave me a gentle young lady with a new heart. Chris had been born again since my last contact with her and I didn’t know it…yet. As we drove toward her home, she began to tell me how God had changed her life. She said that Jesus died to forgive her sins and mine. She explained that God loved me and wanted to adopt me into His family. Quietly, and only under my breath, I mocked every word she said. I tried to act unaffected by her changed life. But you see, that was the testimony. It was her changed life. Yes, her words had power. But I had known Chris and now I was seeing Chris born again. When I dropped her off at home I had to drive away alone, just me and the Holy Spirit of God.

The next day was Sunday and the ‘mighty preacher’ was silenced in my heart by the memory of the night before. All I could do was to wait for him to finish so that I could walk that aisle and ask “how” to be saved. I have no idea what he preached. But today I can still tell you what Chris said 40+ years ago with a changed life.

Is the need in our churches great preachers, with honed homiletical skills? I don’t think so. We need to get back into society and let them see our changed lives. We, with the evident work of Christ in our lives, must share our testimony. And then as they are convicted by the Holy Spirit of God, we can bring them into a Church family they will feel a part of and enjoy fellowshipping with.

If you ask me which is greater a sermon, or the testimony of a changed life, my answer will always be…The testimony of a changed life

Before the snow falls

 Before the snow falls

                   Spring has come and gone. The crisp evening breezes and the refreshing morning rains have given life to God’s creation according to His design. Life was evident in every scenic view that caught the eye. Here at home our house was surrounded with beautiful flowers and shrubs. So many flowers with names I could never remember but I am sure Jane recalls every one of them. She planted them with care and watched them grow throughout the springtime and on into summer.

                   Summer has come and gone, also. The life that was begun in spring matured into awe inspiring beauty during the summer months. Trees grew tall and strong. A host of animals could be seen nursing their young and teaching them so many lessons they would need for life. We had lovely summer evenings laughing with friends, roasting marshmallows over campfires and walking along beaches or forest paths.

                   And, here we are in the autumn of the year. It really has been enjoyable. Now we find ourselves looking back. We always seem to look back. So many things unfinished. It is difficult to make yourself do the necessary things of life on a beautiful spring afternoon. There are bicycles to ride and boats and skateboards and kites to fly. And of course there are ponds to fish in and fields to lie down in. And then summer just creeps in silently before you even realize he is there. And all of the tasks that had to be finished are put off for just a little longer because the beach, like a siren, calls so softly and seductively. Surely the chores of life can wait just a little longer. How much time can it possibly take to camp in the forest of a great mountain ridge? And surely it isn’t wrong to plan a trip to some of God’s most beautiful waterfalls. And again, the tasks of life are shelved for just a little longer.

                   Autumn now finds us with so much to do and so little time. It is still so very beautiful with the multicolored leaves falling gently in the autumn breeze. Yet, at times, it looks strangely ominous when you notice among those falling leaves the bare arms of so many trees, now only half dressed. Life seems to be dissipating slowly with every gust of wind. It is now the chores of greatest urgency that cause us to say, “I really must get this done before the snow falls.” “I must fix the window shutters before the snow falls.” “I must repair the furnace before the snow falls.” How urgent the needs now seems.

                   And now we find ourselves prioritizing because we know we cannot finish all that must be done…before the snow falls. There simply is not enough time. Isn’t this life? The spring of our youth is spent. The vigor of those middle years is waning. And now, as strength and energy seem to be ebbing away we begin to realize what is really important. We see now what really must be done…before the snow falls.

                   I was speaking with one of our nieces recently and the thought occurred to me, and I shared it with her, that God has people he wants us to influence. And could it be that some of these will be people that only we can influence? Is it possible that we could be their last hope? How urgent the need. How many opportunities have we had and how many have passed us by? We really must reach them…before the snow falls. Before our eyes begin to dim, before our limbs become too frail, before our thoughts are jumbled memories…before the snow falls we must reach them.

                   I fear the autumn of life will continue to absorb my days with idle talk and endless play, with tasks that seem to be important but in the end will burn to ash. I cannot imagine the shame of standing before my Lord on judgment day with empty hands. Will I have nothing but the memory of being busy with life and that clarion call to service unfulfilled?

We really must reach them… before the snow falls?