Life by the Word

 Chapter 3

Availability

             1 Peter 3:12 "For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous and his ears are open to their prayers, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil."  It was about three years ago that my dad had his heart operated on in Hackensack, N.J.  A simple cleaning out of his arteries had gone astray and they had to go in and open him up to correct the problem as soon as possible.  The funny thing about it was that I was driving down the turnpike thinking everything was okay.  It wasn't until I reached my parents' home and the place that I grew up in that I realized something was wrong.  As I reached my destination, to my amazement, I found no one there.  I remember thinking to myself, ?Man, this is weird.?  Finally my younger brother Victor came home and gave me the news that our dad was lying in a hospital bed in critical condition all the way in North Jersey.  So my brothers and I made the two-hour trip only to realize that we couldn't get to see our dad until 5:00 PM when visiting hours resumed.

            So I decided to sit in the waiting room of the hospital until that time.  I don't remember where my family went off to, but as I recall I found myself all alone with two strangers (a mother and daughter) sitting directly across from me.  I made a comment to them about how grateful I was to the Good Lord Jesus for helping my dad get getter.  The daughter didn't say much but the mother stated boldly that she was Jewish and that to her "Jesus wasn't the Lord".  She went on to make derogatory statements such as "When the Messiah comes back, maybe she'll be something to see."  Here I was, already shaken up from my dad being at death's door, and this woman was insulting our Risen Lord.  I felt in my spirit that it was time to go to work.  And so I did.  Over and over I kept quoting the word of God back to these two ladies.  I could feel the mother starting to get very angry because her voice got louder and louder.  I finally stood up and stood over them and said enough is enough.  I said, ?Ma'am, you may think what you want, but the Bible clearly says that one day, every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.  I don't care what you say, ma'am, but one day we are going to find out the truth.?  She just shrugged her shoulders and turned her head.  I think I offended her and at the moment, after all those ignorant words came out of her mouth, I really didn't care.  This woman needed to hear the truth and I was ready to give it to her. 

It wasn't until a year later that I came to the realization that God was using me to help spread his message.  Even though I was in pain over my dad's operation and condition, I was glad that I came to a point of self-denial and went to work for Jesus.  All throughout the scriptures, we read of such characters being used for God's Glory and not their own; people who were filled with trouble and doubt about their capabilities to serve our great Lord.  But even so, when it came time to answer the call of God, they humbled themselves and went.  For instance, people such as Moses, Mary the Mother of Jesus, and the twelve disciples all played major roles in God's grand design.  Moses couldn't speak well; Mary was a teenager.  And the twelve disciples were made up of mostly unlearned men ranging from fishermen to tax collectors.  Another example of a person who would seem an unlikely choice to be drafted for God's service would be the Apostle Paul.  Paul, who was probably the greatest minister to the Gentile race and who penned two-thirds of the New Testament was a persecutor of Christians before his conversion to Christianity on the road to Damascus.  The list goes on and on.  From a teenage boy who would be king named David who slayed the so-called mighty Goliath to a forgiven prostitute named Mary Magdalene, who would be the first to preach that Christ had risen.  We see God using the most unlikely of characters from man's eyes for his service and glory.

I asked what does this mean for you and me?  I believe the Lord is showing us here that it is a matter of who is going to get the glory for these victories.  Is it God or man?  I mean think about it, what if the Lord would have used the best combat soldier in the army instead of a thirteen year-old boy?  People would have thought that it was by man's power that this Philistine giant was defeated and not by the help and hand of the Lord.  Satan will try and steal God's glory every chance he can get.  He'll always try and turn the good things the Lord has done and try and make something bad out of them.  This example that I'm illustrating here about David and Goliath goes to show what I'm trying to prove.  I Samuel 18 verses 6 through 9 show Saul, the current king got so jealous because David received so much praise and applause for his success and popularity that he set out to kill David.  We read on that he tries to do this throughout the scriptures by sending 3,000 of his best soldiers after him.  That is a great form of appreciation, isn't it?

Whatever the case, I believe these stories show you and me the true character of God.  That the Lord delights in using the most unlikely of people to get the job done.  And I believe it still rings true today.  The world system wants you to believe that you are washed up and that you are not worthy to serve the Lord because of all that you have done wrong with your life.  I say to that, hogwash.  Don't fall for that lie and deception.  Satan wants you to believe that there is no way you can be forgiven of your sins and that the Lord would not and could not use you to help build his kingdom.  If Christ used these characters that I have just mentioned, he could and may use any of us.  We have to be aware to the call and available to answer.  "Yes, here I am, Lord, use me for your kingdom.  Yes, Lord, I will be the one who goes when others turn away because I love you and want to serve you with a willing mind and spirit."  Not to put words in anyone's mouth, but that should be our reply whenever we get the call to come out of the bullpen.

I want to make one more point here.  It is a very important one too, may I add.  Before God used all these people, something had to happen first.  These people would meet God.  Whether it was speaking with him from the burning bush, or seeing him in a vision on the road to Damascus, or a simple and pleasant visit from an angel stating that you would become pregnant from the Holy Spirit.  All these great people of the Lord would be paid a visit.  They would be shown the favor and support that would help them accomplish what they were supposed to do.

            The single greatest event of my life is meeting Jesus Christ.  One night, I was watching a show about the Lord on TV.  I said, boy, wouldn't it be nice to meet Jesus here on earth before I got to Heaven.  That night I went to sleep, when to my surprise I woke to a vision of my bedroom ceiling in complete brightness.  There stood a figure, a face staring down over me with his hands protruding forward as if to welcome me.  I hovered at this Christ-like figure in total awe of its presence.  I could not take all the glory that was coming upon me in my room.  I trembled with fear, with a feeling of helplessness as after a few moments it faded away.  I'd say, be careful what you ask for.  Not less than three hours before I had wished to see Jesus.  Coincidence?  I don't believe so.  Magnificent in power and glory, yes.  My life has not been the same since that moment and brief encounter.

            I can only thank the Lord with a humble and grateful heart for saving a wretch like me at 32 years of age.  He put up with me and still does today when others have turned their backs and walked away.  I believe that Jesus Christ doesn't see us where are right now.  He sees us for all that we can be; the hope and potential that each one of us brings to this world on our brief eternity here on earth.  I can't tell you today that all the time I am available for service for the Lord.  I would be lying to you if I told you that were so.  But there are moments that I'll be somewhere and God will send me someone out of the blue to minister to.  I'll be going there for one reason and the good Lord has me there for another.  It is usually not revealed to me until I'm in that moment in time.  I believe my job is to acknowledge that moment and be ready to go to work for Jesus.  It could be to preach to someone, comfort someone, or go to battle with someone like those two women in the hospital in Hackensack, NJ.  But every encounter, every person witnessed to should be out of love.  Sometimes there is a kind love, sometimes a tough love, but always, in each situation, our motivation should be love.  I pray for those two ladies in that waiting room.  I pray that they come to the knowledge of the truth that Jesus is Lord before it's too late and they die in their sin.  When I look back at the moment with them and think about it with reflection, I feel a sense of victory; victory because I went to witness to them and gave it all even though I was hurting inside.  I gave my all that day.  Just like he gave his all by giving his life for us on the cross.  If he's the example for us to follow, then we have no excuses to not be available when he calls us to duty.