Focal verse: "Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, 'Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?' And I said, 'Here am I. Send me!'" Isaiah 6:8
I was driving down the road one day during my lunch break, heading to my mom's house to see my son Drew, just like I have done almost every day since he was born. I was listening to K-Love, my favorite Christian radio station, like every other day. Sometimes the station airs call-ins from listeners, and this call-in struck me.
It was from a pastor's wife, who had been grappling with unnamed struggles. She said she was up at 3 a.m. unable to sleep, questioning God, "Do you see what I'm going through? Are you paying attention? Are you going to help me?" I can't remember her exact words, but they were obvious words of exasperation.
The next day, she said, out of the blue, someone called her, asking if there was anything she needed prayer for. She said at that moment, she realized God was speaking through this person, telling her that he hadn't forgotten about her. He was encouraging her through this person during this diffucult time.
While her reason for calling in was to share and to remind us how much God cares about every little detail in our lives, I started thinking about the person who called her. She didn't indicate that this person was particularly close to her. This person didn't seem to have any idea what she was going through. But this person was sensitive enough to the leading of the Holy Spirit, and He used her to encourage His struggling child.
How many times lately have I encouraged someone simply because I was sensitive to the Lord's leading? I didn't want to answer that question. Between working more than 45 hours per week, taking care of my house and my toddler son, and teaching a Bible Study on Wednesday nights, how in the world would I fit in time to be still and let God show me how he wanted to use me in everyday life?
That's when I realized it's not a matter of finding time but instead a matter of preparing the heart. It's a matter of in the course of the everyday, even if it's just in the car on the way to one of our many commitments, pausing, and asking God, "Show me who needs your encouragement today. Show me where you are at work and how you would like me to join you."
How many times does God yearn to use us to encourage someone else, but it doesn't get done simply because we just weren't listening?
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