One More Stepping-Stone (#241 of 365+)

“About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them” (Acts 16:25)


On most days I go about the usual business of life without purposefully seeking out a person with whom I can share the gospel. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that. It’s my firm belief that the Holy Spirit both draws souls to faith in Christ and sends others at the right times to help them along.

Some people will come to a saving knowledge of the Lord when they’re still very young—barely out of diapers—much like what happened to the founder of Focus on the Family, Dr. James Dobson. But others may live long lives filled with all sorts of heartaches and struggles before they’re ready for the good news. Sometimes it’s when death is imminent… or when their first grandchild is born… before their hearts open up to God’s grace. It isn’t for me to determine what someone needs to hear or to judge when they are ready. That’s all up to God and I just have to be ready and willing for him to use me.

The Lord made us all uniquely different from each other, and he calls us as the one-of-a-kind creatures that we are. When I look back at the years before I was saved I can see how God intentionally sent people at specific times in my life to knock on the door of my heart: My Korean grandmother who knew the Lord and prayed for me… my childhood friend Susan who invited me to a Sunday School class… the pretty stranger from her church who gave me a ride home when I missed the bus… my American grandmother who gave me a broach with a vivid picture of Christ on the cross… my golden-haired second cousin who died the same week we played together for the first time…. my father who talked about the resurrection of the dead while visiting my grandfather’s grave… my mother who heard the Lord speak to her, believed, and was baptized… my elderly neighbor who invited me to attend his church’s youth group activities during the summer… my silly friend David who got serious when he shared scriptures about God’s love… and countless others along the way…

I wasn’t ready for the gospel at every turn but I thank God for each person who willingly (and often unwittingly) became God’s stepping-stone on my path to faith. It probably didn’t even occur to most of them that they were being evangelists.

Joni defined evangelism as simply “everything we say or do that moves an individual one step closer to Jesus and salvation.” We don’t even have to know them or be fully aware of the effect we’re having on them. As she so eloquently explained, when we have the joy of the Lord it tends to “spill over and splash on others.”

“But ye are... a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light” (1 Peter 2:9 KJV)

Lord, thank you for the awesome privilege of knowing you. Please place me where I can be someone else’s stepping-stone to faith today. Amen.