Do you ever feel like you are hitting brick walls with your evangelism? Like you feel like you are being faithful and trusting in the Lord yet no matter what you do people are just not listening? Are you wondering why you should force yourself past the fear that comes with talking with new people about Jesus when they are not listening? Do you feel like you are just wasting your time?
If we are being honest, I bet we have all been there at some point in our walks with Jesus – some for short periods of doubt, others for long dry spells in the desert. It is one of the doubts that seem to plague all of us who are working for the Lord to some extent, particularly when we look around at what we can see and judge our efforts by our own metrics of success or failure. I feel like church is going great because ______ (insert made up standard) so I feel like Jesus is working. Or I feel like my outreach is failing because ________(insert made up standard) so I feel like Jesus is not working.
The truth is that Jesus is better than this – He is always working and always bearing fruit….always. He is Jesus after all. We just might not see that fruit immediately.
I recently spoke with someone I had not seen in years. God had put him very clearly in my path for a season and I did my best to minister to Him and preach Jesus whenever the opportunity arose. We had spent many hours in discussion and had talked about the Gospel in great detail but at the time he had been taken out of my life, he had not accepted Jesus. Truthfully, I thought there was very little sign that any of the time invested was bearing any fruit. I was discouraged, depressed and wondered whether I had been wasting my time. MY EYES told me that nothing had happened and MY JUDGMENT said I was a failure. It is funny how self centered everything can get when we are supposed to be servants of God.
Imagine my surprise when my long lost friend started talking to me about the church he was going to and what the Lord was doing in his life. Yes, “the Lord” was used. Praise the Lord he was on the narrow path that leads to salvation, though still feeling things out.
Jesus had not given up on my friend even though I had, kind of — I was still praying for him, but thought things looked bleak. Jesus knew that seeds had been planted and were taking root, they just needed time and teh work of the Holy Spirit. This is why we are told to walk by faith and not by sight, though I couldn’t see what Jesus was doing He certainly was working — our sight is deceptive, our judgment is so limited.
Jesus never fails at what He set out to do – oh how easily we forget that. Father, help us to remember truly how great you are today and every day and trust all results to you!
