I prayed, and my Heavenly Father came through
with a mission for me. He showed me clearly that I was to begin an
online prayer ministry.
To be perfectly
honest, it left me scratching my head. I had no idea how to do this!
I begin by contacting
people I know who were Christians. Some were from my church, others were
online contacts. Interestingly enough, everybody I talked to had the
same message: "It's a waste of time."
I was surprised that
all of them were trying to discourage me. Did I hear my Father
correctly, or did I just imagine it? It's then that I remembered that
the only one who likes to discourage us is the evil one. Bible verse
accuse. It's his way to discourage us so that we will not honor God. Rev
12:10. Now I had a decision to make: Should I listen to men, or should I
listen to my Heavenly Father?
Guess who I choose? My
Father, of course! Even though Christians, even my own friends, tried to
discourage me in this mission, it didn't mean I needed to listen to
them; and in the end, I have never regretted my decision.
I have learned through
my decades of life that whenever our Father gives us a mission, we will
be criticized. Especially by believers. After all, who would we tend to
listen to the most? Someone who doesn't know God? No way! We would be
much more likely to listen to believers, and as a result, this is the
best way for the evil one to discourage us. Let's be sure to remember
that if everybody agrees with our mission, we may have the wrong
mission; and if it is something important to God, we will definitely be
criticized for it.
I prayed a lot during
those days. I enjoyed my time with my father, for it was here that He
gave me instructions: "Send an inspirational devotional written by
someone else every week, followed by a list of prayer requests." I
followed those instructions. Within days, with no advertising, I had a
readership of 20 people, and the following week I began to receive
prayer requests.
In Florida a lady who was dedicated to God
emailed me and told me that a group of twenty Catholic, spirit-filled
people were praying every Monday for my ministry. Wow! At one time a
terrible hurricane was heading for Florida. I joined them in prayer, and
that hurricane never reached Florida. Our Father redirected the storm.
Within 6 months, the
ministry began to blossom, but that is another story for another day.
The point for today is this: We either choose to follow God's advice, or
the advice of men.
What is your choice?
Rob Chaffart
It's not Worth it. The Mission, Part 2
Today's Bible Verse:
"However, when Peter went to Jerusalem, the believers who insisted
on circumcision began to argue with him. They said, 'You went to visit
men who were uncircumcised, and you even ate with them.'" (Acts 11:2-3,
GW)
It's not Worth it. The Mission, Part 2
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