Nancy Hughes: Number three

“He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.” Mark 16:15 (NIV)

My sister Mary told me about a life-changing experience that was a huge turning point for her and sharing her faith. She was sitting at the doctor’s office in the waiting room and noticed a man across from her who had a look of anguish on his face as he waited for his name to be called. She said “hello” and they had a brief conversation.

The Lord prompted her to share His love with this gentleman and to encourage him on whatever journey he was on but she hesitated for a second. “What if he gets angry with me? What if he thinks I am being nosey?” she thought for just a moment and then she was called back to a room. He was gone when she came out and she never saw him again.

A few days later, Mary looked up from her desk at work and noticed an older gentleman wandering up and down the aisles in the store. As she helped him find what he wanted, she sensed his loneliness and immediately felt in her heart that she needed to share Jesus. Mary felt the Lord’s urging: “Talk to this man. Encourage him. Share the Good News.”

Once again - unsure of exactly what to say - she hesitated. As the man walked out of the store, the Lord gently spoke to her heart: “Please . . . don’t let there be a number three.” Her mind instantly went back to the gentleman in the doctor’s office days before and now to this man leaving her store.

Immediately she confessed her disobedience to the Lord by not sharing His love with these two gentlemen and resolved from that day forward that she would share her Savior with everyone she met.

God gives us one opportunity after the other to share Him with people around us. Nothing – absolutely nothing – should keep us from speaking about eternity with people we meet every day. What if we are the ones that the Lord has placed in the path of someone who is lost and hurting and needs to hear love and forgiveness?

Don’t let anything stop you from sharing Jesus. “Please…don’t let there be a number three.”

Father, I know you place people in my path for me to share you. Forgive me when I hesitate. Give me courage and wisdom to tell them about you. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

R.A.P. it up . . .

Reflect

Have you felt the Lord nudging you to share His Good News with someone and you hesitated?
What was your reason for not sharing Jesus with that person?

Apply

Plan ahead different ways that you can share your relationship with Christ with people you meet.
Pray for opportunities to share Jesus and listen for His voice to direct your path.

Power

Mark 16:15 (NIV) “He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.”

Isaiah 52:7 (NIV) “How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news…”

Psalm 96:2 (NIV) “Sing to the Lord, praise his name; proclaim his salvation day after day.”

(For more of Nancy Hughes' writing, check out her blog, Encouragement from the War Room.)