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"And a vision appeared to Paul in the night. A man of Macedonia stood and pleaded with him, saying, 'Come over to Macedonia and help us.'"
(Acts 16:9)
I am typing this devotion while flying from Istanbul, Turkey, to Skopje, the capital city of Macedonia. This European country is located northwest of Greece and only has two million residents today. In less than three hours, one can drive from the southern border to the northern border. The predominant religion is the Orthodox Church; however, the Evangelical Church is growing. Evangelist Randy Faith invited me and two other pastors to join him to travel throughout the country to meet with and encourage pastors. Randy has been on mission to Macedonia nearly ten times. I'm honored to be a part of this team of four. Randy tells us we will travel all over the country and meet every evangelical pastor.
We will encourage the pastors in the areas of prayer and evangelism, two spiritual disciplines that are dear to me. The Macedonian pastors will preach in their churches using my book, For the One, in their preaching. This book focuses on the evangelism of Jesus and how He personally shared the Good News with those He met while walking throughout Israel in the first century. Later this year, Randy will return and engage in evangelistic outreach events. He is a gifted chalk artist. When he sets up on the streets, people come to watch him draw and listen to him share the Good News of Jesus Christ.
My Macedonian call was not as dramatic as Paul's was in Acts 16:9! But the same Holy Spirit who guided Paul and his missionary team almost 2,000 years ago is the same Holy Spirit who called our team to go and minister in this beautiful country.
Will you pray for us band of brothers in Christ as we seek to encourage and be a blessing to these pastors and congregations throughout the country of Macedonia? Let me encourage you to be open to the Holy Spirit and how He will guide you even today to share the Gospel with those God brings into your path. As we look at the life of Jesus and His evangelism in the Gospels, we notice that He was always obedient to the Father's will and accomplished everything the Father gave Him to do. In John 5:19, Jesus said, "Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner." Jesus never engaged with any two people in the same manner. He listened, watched, and was quick to help, heal, and bring the Good News.
What a wonderful privilege and blessing to be on mission with Christ! |
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