Friday, June 30, 2023

I was in a weekly Wednesday morning prayer service recently when I heard many believers asking the Lord for the courage to obey God, for strength to overcome their fear, and for Him to create the right circumstances for them to share their faith with people. As I reflected, I realized this is a common practice among Christians. It seems like Christians pray more about sharing the Gospel than they actually do it! That situation is in complete contrast to our text. Before the disciples went out, they had a conversation with our Lord Jesus Christ. He told them to go into all the world and preach the Gospel (Mark 16:15). In our verse, it says, “They went out and preached everywhere.” That means the early disciples shared the Gospel to all areas on their local map. But let’s be clear — the disciples had many challenges. Their lives were threatened by the Jewish and Roman authorities. They had to travel in difficult terrain. They had to explain their Savior to doubters. Yet, the disciples still went out! The Lord worked with them. Do you realize what that means? The Lord first had to work in His disciples before He worked through them. His power accompanied His Word as they shared it. When they did not know what to say, He gave the disciples words relevant to the situation. And above all, Jesus confirmed the Kingdom of God was at work by endorsing what the disciples said to others through various signs and wonders. They did not have to convince others about who they really were. Jesus did it.

Extraordinarily, God used Haggai to push me into my purpose and place me in ministry.