Be Still and Know

Impatience is a human trait. Even a person who is naturally calm and longsuffering shows impatience sometimes. Now that everyone at my workplace and at our church knows that we are planning to move to Charleston, SC, I have begun feeling like the laughingstock, because no progress is being made toward that move. Michael's house has not sold, my transfer has not come through, and the economy has gone down to such a point that it may be impossible to sell the house except at a great loss.


But we are convinced that the move is His will, and are pursuing it while at the same time following our routine. So the question comes up: Did you pick up a wrong cue somewhere? Second guessing is not hard to do in my case, since most moves we have ever made have resulted in a worse financial situation. Looking back, though, they have brought about different aspects of growth that I needed, and for that I am thankful. Our move to Atlanta brought me face to face with the fact that I had not done much in the way of outreach, and that I knew even less about informal evangelism, the kind that allows people to get close to you and see what makes you tick and only then seeks a decision on the part of the unsaved person. I was able to observe the results in the life of several of the church folk here at Grace Church, and came to the conviction that it was not only what I needed to do, but that it would fit my way of relating to people much better than "buttonholing" a person on the first chance encounter. I asked the Lord to give me the opportunities to put that type of evangelism into practice, and He started to put a real burden on my heart for several of the vendors I dealt with day in and day out. After over a year of establishing a caring relationship with them, I began to find out about their lives, and finally felt that I was having some impact on them. Several of them turned out to be believers who desperately needed someone to care about them, pray for them and listen to them. Others were aware of the gospel but had not yet made a decision for Christ. Easter Sunday 2008 was a glorious day in that one of my vendors came to church (where he had attended as a child over thirty years ago) and made his public decision to accept Christ as Savior. It has been such a joy to see him grow throughout these last eight or nine months, and see how he has become burdened for others and has led one of his friends to Christ.

Many times during these four years of working at my present place of employment I have been ready to throw in the towel. But at those times the Lord has reminded me that my job is to be a witness, and that I am to "be still and know that (He is) God". (Psalm 46:10)

So we are back in "God's waiting room" waiting for Him to move in the salvation or rededication of others around us and the transfer to Charleston. His timing is always perfect, and any impatience on my part is wasted energy.