Taking Every Opportunity by Les Galicinski
Last Friday, I had a business meeting at a local coffee pub with a real estate agent whom I had only met once before. As Ray and I wrapped up our business, I felt compelled by the Holy Spirit to swing the conversation to things of God. I simply asked Ray if he had a Christian background. It turned out his mother was Jewish and his father had been involved in Jehovah Witness. I then asked him if he considered himself to be a good person? Most people say yes to this question and Ray was no exception. I pressed in a little more asking if God would consider him to be a good person. I then took through the Way of the Master line of questions: Have you ever told a lie? Have you ever stolen anything? Have you ever looked with lust? As Ray admitted he had done all of these, I empathized with him admitting that I too was a sinner. Then I asked him if God were to judge him by the 10 commandments would he be innocent or guilty? Would he go to heaven or hell? There was conviction in his voice as he expressed the cry “Who then can be saved?” This led me into a passionate sharing of the good news of Jesus Christ. I explained how much God loved us that he sent his one and only Son into the world to take the punishment that we deserve upon himself.
As I was pouring out my heart, explaining the gospel as best I could, a woman approached our table and interrupted. Tears were welling up in her eyes as she told her story. She was a Christian. She had come into the restaurant depressed and struggling emotionally. She had prayed earnestly that God would give her some visible sign of assurance that he cared for her and was with her. She said that as she overheard me sharing the gospel, the Holy Spirit soared within her and she felt the love of God flood over her and assure her of his love for her. Her prayer had been answered. She proceeded to thank me profusely for my faithfulness to Christ. Ray was a also bit overwhelmed by the experience. I proceeded to encourage Ray to give himself to Christ and encouraged him to check out Harvest Bible Chapel in Muskoka which is right in his neighborhood. Before we parted I asked his permission to pray for him his family and his business. What an amazing lunch! Needless to say I left flying high.
What occurred to me afterwards was the pivotal point in the meeting, when I considered just wrapping up after our business and getting on with my day. I had much to do. But I stepped across the line of indifference and asked Ray a simple personal question: “Do you have a Christian background?” Then I took the time to take an interest in him as a person for whom Christ died. I couldn’t help but think of the many other lost opportunities that I have had over the years just because I was to self absorbed to step out. Join me as I commit afresh to take every opportunity from now on to “get out there”.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Life Is Hard
I just wanted to share the opportunity that the Lord gave to me on Monday. I've been praying specifically for our landlord and have had a few little conversations with her about God, but nothing about Christ or anything that seemed to challenge her in her beliefs. Monday was a difficult day for me with the little ones, and I had been holding back tears on and off all day. I spent a lot of the day pondering how life is truly meaningless without Christ at its center. Well, at the end of the day when my husband got home I went over to drop our landlord’s mail off to her, hoping not to see her because I really didn't feel like talking to anyone. But THIS was the opportunity that God had in store for me to share more about the hope I have in Christ...the conversation was too long to give all the details, but as she usually has in past "God talks", she kept giving ME the credit for things in my life. I refused to agree in any way this time, citing examples of what I was like in my past, and how left to myself I would never have changed. Part way through our talk, she said, "Life is just so hard, isn't it?" Well, I couldn't hold back those tears of mine as I agreed with her, but told her that life with Christ, even though it is hard, is nothing compared to life without him. I told her that what was most important is the eternal reality of my life, living with Jesus forever! I felt the Holy Spirit speaking as I opened my mouth, and the coolest thing was that I spoke to her as if speaking to her spirit and not to the person. I love that perspective. Anyway, she said that she would love to talk more another time, so I'll keep praying towards that end. Thank you for working for Christ...God is using each of you in my life.
I also wanted to share from my journal regarding that same hard day...to show how the Lord has encouraged me.
'Yesterday was a hard day. Kids were crying and I struggled with thoughts of insecurity as a mom. I kept talking to God about the situation. He kept reminding me to submit my pride and desire to do things my own way to him. In the midst of this, I took the kids for a walk. One of them picked up a rock along the way. As we walked back and forth between the shadow of the trees and the bright sun, he said, "Look, Mommy, there are sparkles in my rock. Now look, I can't see the sparkles." As we stepped out of the last shadow before the house I told him to hold up his rock again into the sunlight. "Look,” I told him, “you can only see the sparkles in the sunlight." And as I spoke those words, I realized the deep truth that they held for me: my sparkles will only ever be noticed as I am walking in the light of Christ...submitting my own will and obeying his.'
Listen to the kick-off message for "Get Out There".
Print this page
