Unexpected Messengers

 

Daily Encouragement for December 15, 2014.

 

Unexpected Messengers

Daily Thought: "Keep an open mind to whom you can learn from"

Daily Reading: Mark 1:1-7

 

 

Sometimes at night, after the hustle and bustle of the day has ended, the bedtime routines are done, teeth are brushed and Bible stories are read, I will lay next to one of the kids and talk about the day, reminisce or just make jokes. Each of them look forward to it- and I think that it is a simple way to say that "you are special" to them.

 

Since this time immediately follows our Bible story time, it often becomes a time when I find myself answering some of the toughest spiritual questions. Questions I don't have the answer to- or for that matter no one knows the answer to. Questions like: "What was Jesus like when HE was 8?" "Did Jesus like to climb trees?" "Does Grandma Marge get hang out with Jesus in heaven?" A myriad of curious, sometimes laughable questions accompany the conversations. Sometimes they are challenging, like "How do I know if God answered my prayer with a yes or a no" or "Why didn't Jesus just stay on earth with His followers?" or "What happens if someone died and they never heard about Jesus?"

 

O the faith of the child: Raw, challenging and awesome. Sometimes I feel like I would rather be interrogated by Stephen Hawking then my children on matters of faith. Yet, looking at this- I realize that I probably have learned more at the bedside of my children than I have running around at church some Sunday mornings. Sometimes the greatest lessons come from the most unexpected sources!

 

The same was true of John the Baptist. A man who "lived in the wilderness" and whose dress was so out-of-the ordinary that it was specifically mentioned by the Gospel writer- I imagine that he was a sort of modern-day hobbit to those witnessing his ministry. Regardless of this, people came in droves to see John and be baptized. The Bible says that even "all of the people in Jerusalem" came out to see John. To put that into prospective- we are talking about a three day ordeal (travel a day-listen a day- return trip for a day). In modern times- this would be something so incredible that droves of people would travel by car from New York to North Carolina just to hear the message and participate.

 

John had no masters of divinity- no formal religious education and wasn't a "dignified" person by any means. He was merely a humble servant with a heart soaring in faith and truth. Yet God, in His glory, used the most unexpected of individuals to do such an important work!

 

Today, as we go about our days and busy schedules, let us be open to receiving (or delivering) the message- even if it comes from the most unexpected of sources. God Bless!

 

Prayer: Lord God, thank you for your word and for all the unique ways I may receive it. Open my heart, my eyes and my mind to learning the plan and promise you have for my life. Amen.