August 17, 2004

[Rev. Doc]

A Missionary

"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
Acts 1:8

What a joy it is to be on mission for the Lord. Wherever you are, whatever your profession, whoever you come into contact with, God can use you in mighty and miraculous ways to make a difference for Him and change lives.

John G. Paton, a missionary to the South Sea Islands, often lived in danger as he worked among the hostile aborigines who had never heard the gospel. At one time three witch doctors, claiming to have the power to cause death, publicly declared their intentions to kill Paton with their sorcery before the next Sunday. To carry out their threat, they said they needed some food he had partially eaten. Paton asked for three plums. He took a bite out of each and then gave them to the men who were plotting his death.

On Sunday, the missionary entered the village with a smile on his face and a spring in his step. The people looked at each other in amazement, thinking it couldn't possibly be Paton. Their "sacred men" admitted that they had tried by all their incantations to kill him. When asked why they had failed, they replied that the missionary was a sacred man like themselves, but that his God was stronger than theirs. From then on Paton's influence grew, and soon he had the joy of leading some of the villagers to the Lord.

Prayer: Ask the Lord to give you the bold heart of a missionary wherever He places you.

"No reserve, no retreat, no regrets" ~William Borden, millionaire turned missionary to China who died in his 20s from cerebral meningitis.