Speak Up

This story comes from Bobby Joiner.  It hit me because I have allowed myself to fall into the habit of allowing these opportunities to pass me by. The message of hope we carry is what the world needs

I need to convey a little story that sort of emphasizes the importance of spending some alone time at the first portion of the day with our Maker and Creator of the very day that we are about to face.
In fact, had I not been “in the very act of communicating with our Lord” I’m afraid my selfish nature would have NOT granted me permission to encounter David. And, I would have missed a great blessing!
It was CHRISTmas Eve morning and I had reasoned the night before that the only place in “The Holiday Inn” that I was sort of safe to find a few precious moments of premium alone time with the ONE whose birthday we were about to celebrate was the cozy, CHRISTmassy front porch.

With 13 folks you dearly love sleeping in the same place it’s a small challenge to find a quiet place. Oh, in case you’re wondering, our Holiday Inn is not a motel—let me explain.
Our “Holiday Inn” is really our get-a-way place inside of beautiful Callaway Gardens that my 2 year old grandson has aptly nick-named “The Sugar Plum Cottage!” It really does look sort of like what I think Santa’s house may look like at the North Pole!  For CHRISTmas décor on our front porch I have strategically placed 8 or 9 different sized, snow-covered CHRISTmas trees, laced with sparking white lights. And of course there’s plenty of thick snow all underneath them. The roof is lined with blinking ice-sickle lights, and for a southerner like me who loves snow but doesn’t really ever get to have any white CHRISTmas’, the feeling is sweet! Man, when I’m nestled in on that porch it gives me the “feeling” that I will see elves hitching up reindeer any moment. (Sort of like the quiet, free and alone feeling I get when I’m out hunting. Well, I AM hunting—hunting precious fellowship with God!

Anyway, I got up earlier than everyone Christmas Eve so I could enjoy some valuable quiet time with THE REASON FOR THE SEASON. I slipped on a hooded sweat shirt, fixed my starbuck coffee and eased out onto the porch into my porch recliner, smack dab into the middle of God’s new morning. Oh yes, “me and the Lord” were enjoying a wonderland QUIET TIME together! And then-n-n——-  I had just about finished my morning prayer and was closing it out like I do each morning, quoting Scripture back to Father. I know that He loves to hear us recite His very own Word. Plus, it really helps me to “tote” (apply) the Scripture during the day that I earlier “quoted” to God just a few hours earlier! (Try it!)  Hey, don’t you love it when one of your own children comes up to you and begins to say, tell, and repeat the very words that you taught them earlier in their lives back to you? Sure you do! Well, I believe God does too.  Better yet, don’t ya love it when you SEE your children actually DO things that you taught them? WOW! This is so gratifying for us! Well, I am sure God enjoys it too! He says so!

That morning I had some soft, instrumental CHRISTmas music playing over our out-door speakers, but I could faintly hear—even with my bad hearing—some scuffling going on in the yard! It got closer and closer and it reminded me of the sound of an armadillo messing up a good deer hunting morning in the woods.  Suddenly, right there in my own yard at 7:15 am, only a few feet from my porch, stood a young man. Folks, it was kind of dark, about 30 degrees, and seeing a man walking from my back yard so close to me was sort of strange!  I knew that he couldn’t see me because I was well-hidden behind our green shrubs. Also, I blended in real well with all of my CHRISTMas trees on the porch! As I watched him, I quickly saw “he was working!” He was the village fertilizer man throwing fertilizer on our shrubs and trees. I knew they did this for us about 3 or 4 times a year, but this early? This cold? On CHRISTmas Eve??

The hard-working young man looked to be about 20 or so and he had an unusually serious look on his face. I knew he would be shocked if I said something, so I started not to. I knew if I didn’t say anything he would soon just disappear into the morning fog. My sin nature was screaming—NO! But, I sort of heard God say SPEAK!   Remember, I told ya that I was right in the middle of my quiet time and I had just been speaking with God and listening to Him talk to me as I quoted Scripture back to Him. Since I had been listening to God, He got the nod. I have learned that humans generally DO what we have been habitually listening to most!   We are definitely creatures of habit. We become “what” and “who” we hang around! HANG around GOD first-thing every single day and watch what happens to you!

One of the last verses I always quote back to Him every morning is:

Rom 8:35- “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?—— No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

After I quote that to Him, I add something that I came up with—
“And Father—please help me to be motivated to treat all the people I meet today with this same LOVE that You so graciously extended to me!”

This helps keep me from being so dad-gum critical and judgmental of people—especially people I have a hard time liking. I sometimes fail, but without at least starting out the day “WITH LOVE and IN LOVE” I would be one, evil, selfish person!   So, I decided to speak to this “stranger!” Remember what Father’s Word said about being loving toward “strangers?”

Heb 13:1- “Bobby, Keep on loving each other as brothers. Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it. Remember those in prison as if you were their fellow prisoners, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering.”

There’s another divine reason I spoke to him rather than just selfishly letting him be about his fertilizing business. I HAD JUST TOLD GOD I WANTED TO BE ABOUT HIS BUSINESS—not mine! And just what is GOD’S BUSINESS? Fertilizing the world with HIS LOVE! And that’s really such an easy, rewarding job—casting out UNCONDITIONAL LOVE. It has really begun to be fun for me!  Personal lesson learned over many years: “ If I go more than a couple of days without doing this, it gets more difficult to do because I am so easily swayed back into thinking too much about what others may think—particularly if I say the J WORD! So, I try not to go a day without PRACTICING UNCONDITIONAL LOVE.  We all get better at the things we practice!

My first words came out and they startled him—

“Merry CHRISTmas!”
“Wow, you scared me! I had no idea you were there!”
“Yeah, I figured. But, I just wanted to tell you that God loves you, and so do I. Merry CHRISTmas son.”

He paused, turned toward me and with the most amazed look on his face humbly muttered—
“Man, I sure did need that! You don’t know what all is going on in my life right now. I am not able to give my family any CHRISTmas this year and it hurts.”  “I know I don’t know! But, I do know the ONE who does know and He just wants you to talk to Him and trust Him! Jesus Christ is the real CHRISTmas present!”   After about 5 neat minutes of “down to the basics of life conversation with him” I saw that he was just like one of the thousands I have come to know in the last 30 years of my life. He was just like I was at his age—a person who “thought he had it all together but it was slowly coming unglued!”

He was just another young person looking for love in all the wrong places and faces! By this time he was looking at me now like a little puppy! I remembered (it was a God-moment) that I needed to GIVE him LOVE, not just tell him about HIM. So, I quickly stood up and said— “Son, stay right there! I have something for you!”
I didn’t wait for his reply. I hurried into the house. When I came back out he hadn’t moved a muscle. I walked down the steps and introduced myself and shook his hand. I discovered his name was David and I told him about the Biblical connection to his name, “David, the man after God’s own heart!

He just smiled!    I said, “Here David, I think God wants me to give you a little something!”
I handed him a beautiful gold coin with JESUS’ picture on it. He took it and stared at it for about 10 seconds without saying anything. He turned it over and over again in his trembling hand and finally just said, “WOW! It’s the most beautiful thing I have ever seen!  I then handed him a 20 dollar bill wrapped in a little card. He had taken the gold coin but when I handed him the money he said something like—

“Sir, I can’t take your money but I will keep this awesome coin with me every day for the rest of my life! You are right! Jesus is really all that counts!”  “David, the money is just a little love gift from us to get your little lady a Christmas present. God has blessed me so I want to bless you. And, the coin—well David—it’s NOT a good luck coin—it is simply to daily remind you of the only ONE in life that is of any lasting value. The coin simply radiates JESUS. It’s His birthday we are celebrating tomorrow, but it’s His death and resurrection that can bring to you the greatest gift ever—eternal life with God, if you simply receive Him by faith!”   “Yes sir!” David, please take both. I love giving them! Please let me!”  “Well, thank you sir! Thank you sir very much! Man-n-n!” (tears)   We hugged. Both of us had a few small tears hiding over in the corner—just waiting on permission to fall!
I turned and walked back up on the porch and as he disappeared into the morning mist, he humbly said—
“Sir—I will never forget this!”  “I won’t either David! If I don’t see you again, hope to see you in heaven!”
“Yes sir!   “And tell your lady JESUS loves her, too!”

JESUS CAFÉ! Listen! Guess who really got the biggest blessing? It wasn’t David!!

But, had I not gotten in the heavenly habit years ago of meeting with my Father first thing every morning, you better believe I would have never even spoken to my new friend, David. It wasn’t me that actually did this! It had to be JESUS working through me because I am too selfish and prideful to bother myself or David with such a foolish interruption.

“HAPPY NEW YEAR” is a nice verbal gesture, but it holds no power or meaning.

“HAVING A CHRIST-CENTERED NEW DAY” one day at the time—now there’s a lot of truth in that statement!

2 Cor 4:16- Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.