Dear Ursula:
I am writing to help you shake this feeling of
evangelistic uselessness that has overtaken you. Several times you've said that
you don't see how Christ can possibly use you. Our church must bear part of the
responsibility for making you feel as you do. I have in mind the success-story
mentality of the church. Our church periodicals tell the story of Milton
Moneybags who uses his influential position to witness for Christ. At a church
youth meeting, we have a testimony from the football ‘legend’, Bull Kickoffsky,
who commands the respect of his team-mates when he witnesses for Christ. We are
led to think that if you don't have the leverage of stardom or a big position
in the business world, you might as well keep your mouth shut. Nobody cares
what Christ has done for you.
We've forgotten an elementary fact about Christian witness, something that should encourage you and me: God has chosen what the world calls foolish to shame the wise. He has chosen what the world calls weak to shame the strong. He has chosen things of little strength and of small repute, yes, and even things which have no real existence to explode the pretensions of the things that are: that no man may boast in the presence of God.
When Jesus Christ chose His disciples, He didn't choose Olympic champions or Roman senators. He chose simple people like you and me. Some were fishermen, one was a political extremist, another was a publican, a nobody in that society. But these for Christ, these men turned the Roman world upside-down (or rather the ‘right-side-up’ as the world was already upside down). How did they do it? Through their popularity? They had none. Their position? They had none. Their power was the power of Christ through the Holy Spirit.
Ursula, don't forget that we still need the ordinary people in the hands of our extraordinary Christ to turn the world around to Him.
Blessings, LH ><>
We've forgotten an elementary fact about Christian witness, something that should encourage you and me: God has chosen what the world calls foolish to shame the wise. He has chosen what the world calls weak to shame the strong. He has chosen things of little strength and of small repute, yes, and even things which have no real existence to explode the pretensions of the things that are: that no man may boast in the presence of God.
When Jesus Christ chose His disciples, He didn't choose Olympic champions or Roman senators. He chose simple people like you and me. Some were fishermen, one was a political extremist, another was a publican, a nobody in that society. But these for Christ, these men turned the Roman world upside-down (or rather the ‘right-side-up’ as the world was already upside down). How did they do it? Through their popularity? They had none. Their position? They had none. Their power was the power of Christ through the Holy Spirit.
Ursula, don't forget that we still need the ordinary people in the hands of our extraordinary Christ to turn the world around to Him.
