For a few days, the interaction messed with me. How could someone intentionally disrupt the moment a person is meeting Jesus? I talked with a few pastors on our team who also said they were having difficulty shaking it. I thought of the verse where Jesus said the religious leaders shut the door to others entering the Kingdom as I felt this guy could have been a tool of the enemy to shut the door on others. I thought of the verse where Jesus said that “sin is going to come but woe to the person through which it comes.” The more I thought the more frustrated I became, so I asked Jesus to teach me, to work on me, to mold me through it.
Here is what God has done in my heart. He reminded me of all the rejoicing going on in heaven when one sinner repents. Here I was saddened when I should have been rejoicing. Rejoicing as salvation has come! He has given me a deeper sense of awe for those moments, a deeper sense of appreciation of the battle that is taking place. He reminded me of the importance of being prepared for those moments, of praying in faith for those moments, of asking others to pray as we go into those weekends. He reminded me of the power of the gospel – that His power is bigger than any disruption (Romans 1:16). He reminded me that He makes His appeal through broken and messed up people like me (II Corinthians 5:20) and He is the One who does the saving. We are responsible to open our mouths. He has the results and the response and the attacks covered. I can rest in Him. A moment of disruption has become a few weeks of God developing me.
If you attend Mariners, I want to remind you of the beauty of those “I believe” moments and invite you to enjoy them, to pray through them, and to remember the goodness of our God in the midst of them. And never be “that guy.”
This article originally appeared here and is used by permission.
