A strange thing happened to me Saturday. I was driving around posting
flyers for the Invasion concert and while sitting at a stop light in a
low income area of Charlotte I began looking around at the people who
were there. The light is located near several gas stations and at them
were people just standing around or leaning against the building. There
was a man walking down the median of the road who appeared to have
battled the demons of alcohol or drug abuse. His posture was bent and he
stumbled as he walked. I could hear obscene lyrics playing loudly from a
nearby vehicle. In the matter of 60 seconds I processed these scenes
through my senses and I before I even knew what was happening I began
weeping uncontrollably.
Each of the people I saw have a purpose for being alive. However, from what I could see in that brief amount of time, none of them were fulfilling that purpose. I was not standing in judgment of them. We all have a choice in how we spend our days. What I was feeling in my spirit was the sorrow of the Father when He sees us pursuing things not of Him or outside of His will for our lives. He grieves for us. We may engage in activities and justify them with the excuse that at least we are not hurting anyone. Yet, if what we are doing is apart from God, then we are grieving Him. He yearns and longs for us to commune with Him.
I recently realized that my closest friends are all former drug addicts, drug dealers, prostitutes, alcoholics, and gang members. You would not necessarily know these things about them when you first meet them. They are all now serving God and not with a common, every day type of service either. They are some of the most passionate people I've ever known. When you have been in the depths of the hell that exists here on earth, you have a whole new comprehension of God's grace and His life changing power. The stories in scriptures are not just stories about others. Your life is a living, breathing, real testimony that God is still alive and the Holy Spirit is still in the business of transforming lives today. When this gets inside of you, it is impossible to not share Jesus with others.
The people I saw on Saturday all have a story. There are reasons and circumstances that brought them to where they are today. Just like all of us. We all have a story. While the details vary, we have all arrived where we are in life because of choices made in the past. The difference in the addict and the former addict was a choice was made to change. We all have our addictions. Instead of looking the other way when we see a person in hurt, what if we all saw them through the eyes of Christ? What if instead of feeling angry at the person asking for change, our hearts broke for the spirit of begging? Just like the woman with the issue of blood who pressed in to touch Jesus' garment, let's pray for those hurting around us to have a desire in their spirits to encounter Jesus. Perhaps they already have that desire, yet their shame and feeling of condemnation keeps them hiding in the shadows. But what if they were drawn out of those shadows?
"Now when the woman saw that she was not hidden, she came trembling; and falling down before Him, she declared to Him in the presence of all the people the reason she had touched Him and how she was healed immediately. And He said to her, “Daughter, be of good cheer; your faith has made you well. Go in peace.” Luke 8:47-48
What is it that you have been hiding? Are you willing to come before Him, even if it's with trembling and falling down? Are you willing to tell Him the reason you need to touch Him? Are you willing to do that....if it's the only way to receive your healing?
Each of the people I saw have a purpose for being alive. However, from what I could see in that brief amount of time, none of them were fulfilling that purpose. I was not standing in judgment of them. We all have a choice in how we spend our days. What I was feeling in my spirit was the sorrow of the Father when He sees us pursuing things not of Him or outside of His will for our lives. He grieves for us. We may engage in activities and justify them with the excuse that at least we are not hurting anyone. Yet, if what we are doing is apart from God, then we are grieving Him. He yearns and longs for us to commune with Him.
I recently realized that my closest friends are all former drug addicts, drug dealers, prostitutes, alcoholics, and gang members. You would not necessarily know these things about them when you first meet them. They are all now serving God and not with a common, every day type of service either. They are some of the most passionate people I've ever known. When you have been in the depths of the hell that exists here on earth, you have a whole new comprehension of God's grace and His life changing power. The stories in scriptures are not just stories about others. Your life is a living, breathing, real testimony that God is still alive and the Holy Spirit is still in the business of transforming lives today. When this gets inside of you, it is impossible to not share Jesus with others.
The people I saw on Saturday all have a story. There are reasons and circumstances that brought them to where they are today. Just like all of us. We all have a story. While the details vary, we have all arrived where we are in life because of choices made in the past. The difference in the addict and the former addict was a choice was made to change. We all have our addictions. Instead of looking the other way when we see a person in hurt, what if we all saw them through the eyes of Christ? What if instead of feeling angry at the person asking for change, our hearts broke for the spirit of begging? Just like the woman with the issue of blood who pressed in to touch Jesus' garment, let's pray for those hurting around us to have a desire in their spirits to encounter Jesus. Perhaps they already have that desire, yet their shame and feeling of condemnation keeps them hiding in the shadows. But what if they were drawn out of those shadows?
"Now when the woman saw that she was not hidden, she came trembling; and falling down before Him, she declared to Him in the presence of all the people the reason she had touched Him and how she was healed immediately. And He said to her, “Daughter, be of good cheer; your faith has made you well. Go in peace.” Luke 8:47-48
What is it that you have been hiding? Are you willing to come before Him, even if it's with trembling and falling down? Are you willing to tell Him the reason you need to touch Him? Are you willing to do that....if it's the only way to receive your healing?
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