FIVE UNDERSTANDABLE WORDS FOR TODAY

“He brought him to Jesus”   John 1:42

One of the greatest miracles to ever witness is the birth of a child. It truly is amazing. I was present at the birth of both of our daughters. However, the birth of our first born was one that taught me a powerful spiritual lesson.  You see, my wife, Sandra, had been in labor over 18 hours when the time finally came for the Nicole to make her debut on the world scene. She quite literally pushed her own way out, causing much needed repair to Sandra’s body…  so much so, that the doctor kept apologizing for what had happened.  I’m sure he was worried about possible legal consequences, though he seemed to do an excellent job in the after birth surgery Sandra required. Due to the tearing that occurred there was a lot of blood, and Nicole came out covered in Sandra’s blood. When he lifted her up she was lifeless and appeared to be dead. I began considering how I would present the news to Sandra and our family members waiting for us. I was totally gripped with sadness and shock at what I saw.

Then the doctor suctioned Nicole’s nose and mouth openings and gave her a swift pop on the rear… Nicole came alive instantly! I remember thinking, “It’s a miracle! Praise God, she’s alive! She’s alive!” I was ecstatic! For all I knew, I had just witnessed a true miracle… and I believe to this day that every birth is a blessed miracle of God.

To me the greatest miracle we can ever witness is that of one being born again. It is a supernatural event with eternal implications. Today’s five understandable words, I believe, are the second most powerful set of five words in the Bible; the first being, “God so loved the world” (John 3:16).  The words for today show Andrew, a disciple of John the Baptist, being ‘introduced’ to Jesus by his mentor, John the Baptist, with the words, “Behold, the Lamb of God” (John 1:36) After John the Baptist declared such, his two disciples immediate-ly left their teacher and began to follow Jesus. Preachers of today get offended when others leave their flock to ‘follow’ another teacher/preacher. However, John the Baptist had an attitude of “He must increase, I must decrease” (John 3:30).

One of the two that left John the Baptist that day was a man named Andrew. He had a brother named Simon. Today’s five simple words describe what will be remembered forever in heaven, and will be remembered every time we as Christ followers bring someone to Jesus. You see, being born again is similar to what happened at my daughter’s birth. The Bible describes each of us as being dead in sin (Ephesians 2:1-3). When God speaks to us through His Holy Spirit (the spiritual obstetrician) we are made alive in Christ, covered by His blood that was shed for us on the cross, just as Nicole was covered by my wife’s blood who gave her body up to deliver her precious life. (Ephesians 2:4-8)

It has been my distinct pleasure to share God’s love with those who are down and out, cut out, left out, pushed out, and kept out by those who are ‘in’. Jesus has a profound love for those who are on the fringes. He even told the Pharisees that those that are well do not need a doctor, and that He came to heal the sick, feed the poor, and release the captives.

The joy of praying with a person whose heart and mind have been touched by the power of God’s Holy Spirit is just as joyous and miraculous as the birth of my daughters. It has been my privilege to pray with people in their homes, in hospitals, in a church pew, in a store aisle, and in our own home as each gave his/her heart to Christ in believing prayer of confession of sin, repentance from sin’s walk, and inviting Jesus into the heart. I want to share with you one experience.

From 2006-2011 I worked at a Lowe’s Home Center during a time when no church would provide me the opportunity to minister. I didn’t know why the door would not open, and trusted God with how He was writing the story of my life. You see, I don’t deserve anything, as I am a sinner saved by God’s grace. God used time, His Word, and other Godly saints to aid in a transformation process that is ongoing – even to this day. A friend of mine remarked once, “Wow! You must have been real bad if it’s taking this long!”  Well, he’s right. God is still working on me. But I digress…  back to the story:

In 2009, I was working at a Lowe’s in Scottsdale, Arizona. During my tenure there, some of the associates began calling me preacher, as I would share Christ with as many as were open to dialogue with me on the matter. Anyway, I man and his mother came into the store and ‘caught’ me as I was walking back to my department. The man was quite upset and asked me where he could find some door locks. I walked with him to the hardware department and showed him our assortment of door handles.  The man asked which ones were the most secure and the least susceptible to being compromised. He wanted four exterior door handles – “the best money can buy,” he said urgently. Then the Holy Spirit prompted me to ask the man a question.

I asked him, “Why do you need them?”

He answered with an obvious broken heart, describing a story of broken promises and a fractured family. His wife had an affair with another man. He was certain that she would attempt to return to take the children when he was not home, and he wanted to prevent such from happening, as he did not want his children exposed to the illicit relationship.

Then I blurted out, “Have you asked God how to handle it?”

He answered, “What did you say?”

His mother began crying. You see, she had told him the same thing in the car on the way over to the store. His mother declared that he would not listen to her unless God intervened and brought an angel to convince him.

His mother interjected, “I prayed that God would lead us to someone that would confront my son with that very question.”

At that moment, I felt that I was free to share with the father. I told him that God wanted him to at least try to win his wife’s heart back; that God has designed marriage in such a way as to make him responsible for the spiritual leadership of his home; that if he would dedicate his home to God and prove it with Godly love and care for his family, God would restore his marriage. After I said it, my human voice was telling me that I was giving him false hope, but in my heart of hearts I wanted God to work for this man and his family.

I asked him if he had a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. He said no. I asked him if he wanted his marriage and family to be whole again. He said yes. I asked him if he understood that sin separated him from a holy loving God. He shook his head as he began to cry. I asked if he wanted to pray with me to ask Jesus, Who paid the price for our sin on a cruel cross, into his heart and take over his life. He said yes.  So, through the tears and with a short prayer, I witnessed another soul entering the joy of a rescued life and the promise of eternity! We gave each other a hug and high fives. He didn’t buy a thing. He left the store and I returned to my department praising God.

About four months later, that same man entered the store asking every associate he encountered, “Where is the preacher man?” He finally found me in my department. He asked if I remembered him, which I had to honestly say that I didn’t.  He reminded me of the event four months earlier. He described how he shared his faith to his wife… he ‘brought her to Jesus’! He declared his love for her and they were back together as a family; they began attending a local church and began reading God’s Word as well. I couldn’t have been more joyful. I prayed with him right there, thanking God for His power to save and restore lives…  thanking Him for the work He had done and was doing to restore my life. I’ve never seen him again, but I look forward to seeing him in heaven.

Now, I do not share this story to draw any accolades to myself. I simply share it to show how powerfully God can work through one who is willing to share. I’m not even that good at sharing my testimony or talking about salvation, but I do so because Christ directed each believer to tell.

God is so good. Are you open to being used by God to bring someone to Jesus?