Trust in the Lord
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own
understanding; In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make
your paths straight."
~~~~~ Proverbs 3:5,6~~~~~~~~
A missionary on furlough told this true story while visiting his home
church in Michigan...
While serving at a small field hospital in Africa, every two weeks I
travelled by bicycle through the jungle to a nearby city for
supplies. This was a journey of two days and required camping
overnight at the halfway point. On one of these journeys, I arrived
in the city where I planned to collect money from a bank, purchase
medicine and supplies, and then begin my two-day journey back to the
field hospital.
Upon arrival In the city, I observed two men fighting, one of whom
had been seriously injured. I treated him for his injuries and at
the same time witnessed to him of the Lord Jesus Christ. I then
travelled two days, camping overnight, and arrived home without
incident.
Two weeks later I repeated my journey. Upon arriving in the city, I
was approached by the young man I had treated. He told me that he
had known I carried money and medicines. He said, "Some friends and
I followed you into the jungle, knowing you would camp overnight. We
planned to kill you and take your money and drugs. But just as we
were about to move into your camp, we saw that you were surrounded by
26 armed guards."
At this I laughed and said that I was certainly all alone out in
that jungle campsite. The young man pressed the point, however, and
said, "No sir, I was not the only person to see the guards. My five
friends also saw them, and we all counted them. It was because of
those guards that we were afraid and left you alone."
At this point in the sermon, one of the men in the congregation
jumped to his feet and interrupted the missionary and asked if he
could tell him the exact day that this happened. The missionary told
the congregation the date, and the man who interrupted told him this
story:
"On the night of your incident in Africa, it was morning here and I
was preparing to go play golf. I was about to putt when I felt the
urge to pray for you. In fact, the urging of the Lord was so strong,
I called men in this church to meet with me here in the sanctuary to
pray for you. Would all of those men who met with me on that day
stand up?"
The men who had met together that day stood up. The missionary
wasn't concerned with who they were--he was too busy counting how
many men he saw.
There were 26.
**This story is an incredible example of how the spirit of the Lord
moves in mysterious ways. If you ever hear such prodding, go along
with it. Nothing is ever hurt by prayer except the gates of hell.**
~I encourage you to forward this to as many people as you know. If
we all take it to heart, we can turn this world towards Christ once
again.~
- Courtesy of Scott Appleton
12/15/97
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