L is an 80+ year old lady. She did not receive much formal education. But she is smart, hard working, an astute investor, and stubborn. Most of her children are Christians, and for many years they have tried to persuade her of the authenticity of Jesus Christ as the Son of God. Yet she has always resisted. One of the major reasons she gave was that she had committed herself to some Buddhist deity years ago. Now that this deity has made her children prosperous, it would be traitorous to abandon the Buddhist deity for the Christian God. For many years it was a stand-off. Her children kept trying hard. But it seemed she would not give an inch.
A short while ago, out of the blue, L started to ask about the requirements of becoming a Christian. That, naturally, created a buzz among her children and the sizable pool of relatives, friends, and churches praying for her. Yet she still refused to pray the believer’s prayer, saying that she had to take care of something first.
Last Sunday L went to the Buddhist temple to say goodbye to a bunch of deities. One by one she told them she was not going to worship them anymore, that even if she were to come to the temple again, she would not burn incenses to them. That evening, she prayed the believer’s prayer with her youngest daughter over a long distance phone call.
That is a real miracle. Who knows, that after so many years of apparent stalemate, that L would suddenly make up her mind to become a believer? Knowing her, and from the decisive actions that she took, it is a clear decision and a genuine conversion. And we know that we should never lose faith, and never give up.
2 comments:
The Lord is faithful to a thousand generations! All glory and honor are His alone!
We just witnessed a miracle, the work of the Holy Spirit, because all who know this dear lady classified her case as "mission impossible", and politely commented "we could only pray". And prayed we all did. Many people she doesn't know have been praying for her; but what is most surprising is that many people whom even her children don't know have been praying for her. It must be the greatest reunion in heaven to meet all the people who have been praying for us and our loved ones.
I'm sure of at least 4 things:
1) There's no greater joy than having a part in someone's salvation. We teach, we heal, we counsel, we serve, so people live better. While we are doing all these, we should not forget to let them know the most important concern is where we spend eternity. All other worries pale in comparison;
2) Nothing is too hard for God;
3) The Holy Spirit works;
4) Prayers work!
Yes, we are often of little faith. We often feel it is hopeless. But time and again God shows us that, with Him, anything is possible.
Sometimes, even when a miracle happens in front of our eyes, we try to find "natural" explanations. "No, she is just trying to please you." "She probably doesn't know what she is doing." ...
Sometimes I wonder why God still puts up with us when we have so little faith. But I am really glad that He does!
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