Keep Working For the Harvest

Galatians 6:9 (New International Version)

Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.

What follows is a story I read the other day that has great meaning to each of us. We may never see the fruit of our witnessing, but God can use it. If you are discouraged today take heart and know that God will use the seeds that you plant in the souls of man.

His name was Ronnie and he would continually come each day faithfully and share his Baptist belief about Jesus Christ to me. I had known Ronnie for many years in my boyhood town but through the years we became separated and went our own way in life. Now here he was preaching to an alcoholic and drug addict about this Jesus.

He would daily tell me of the love Jesus had for me and that unless I received Him I was going to hell. My answer to that was typical, I didn’t care and besides all my friends were going with me.

Every day he came and every day I embarrassed him, was rude to him and humiliated him. Then one day Ronnie stopped coming and I was so relieved.

As time passed I became introduced to the Christian life style and one day I accepted Jesus into my life. I then proceeded to go to Bible College, became ordained and today am a Pastor of a Congregational Church in London Ontario, Canada.

During this time in my walk, God spoke to me and told me to find Ronnie and let him know what had happened. This urging was so great that I just could not deny it nor ignore it. I called my mother to see if she could get me Ronnie’s phone number and she did. I then proceeded to make the call and got Ronnie on the line.

I proceeded to tell him how the seeds he had planted in my life had borne fruit and that I wanted him to know that he truly was a blessing to me and my family.

There was a pause on the other end and then I could hear Ronnie crying. I wondered what I had said to make this man cry. He came back on the line and told me that he was just sitting at his kitchen table feeling kind of down because he had been questioning God as to whether he had been used to bring anyone to Christ and he had felt like a failure.

He then proceeded to tell me that he had just returned from the doctor that day and had been diagnosed with cancer and could not be operated on. He had a very short time left.

Ronnie told me that that phone call had made a difference to him and he could now feel good because he had brought one bad character to the Lord.

When the voice of the Holy Spirit is so loud, so persistent, never ignore Him. You never know whose life you will make an impact upon.

Dear Lord help our life, our actions and our words make an impact on somebody today. Help us always be faithful and to take the opportunity to share the Good News with those in our life. In Jesus’ name, Amen.