Brother Clifford made it a duty upon
himself that come sunshine or rain, he will be at the Train Station
distributing Gospel Tracts to passengers as they board or leave the train! This
he did faithfully for several years.
One day at the church service after a
rendition by the choir members in the church, the choir was appreciated,
praised and given a standing ovation. Brother Clifford, instead of being happy
for them was very sad. He thought his soul-winning efforts were not being acknowledged,
rewarded and recognized by the church members and the ministers. He also
noticed that nobody from the station has met him to thank him for what he has
been faithfully doing over the years.
Brother Clifford decided to abandon
the trips to the Train Station. Instead, he joined the choir and started
singing with them. To his surprise, he was warmly welcomed. He also discovered
that very soon he was singing and receiving standing ovation. He concluded in
his mind he has just made the right decision.
One day, he sang Psalm 23 as a solo
and by the time he finished singing, the whole church including the pastoral
team and the elders were on their feet clapping and giving him standing
ovation. Suddenly, there arose an old man, a stranger in the midst of the
congregation who asked to sing the same song while the church was still on its
feet clapping for the soloist. Against protocol, the pastor cynically allowed
the old man to sing.
By the time the old man finished
singing, the whole church was on its knees, some weeping, others praying in
repentance.
That day, there was no more sermon
but an altar call with sinners giving their lives and backsliders returning to
their first love and the whole church rededicating its life.
Brother Clifford, the evangelist in a
choir robe, felt a deep hole in his heart. He felt empty. He saw the
difference between ENTERTAINMEMT FOR THE APPRECIATION OF MEN AND MINISTRATION
FOR THE APPRECIATION OF HEAVEN. He left the church with a heavy heart.
Without thinking of removing his
choir robe, he headed for the Train Station empty-handed as if in a trance.
Getting there, he met a man in the same spot where he used to stand to
distribute Gospel leaflets before. The man was distributing gospel tracts and
handed him one. The Tract read; “I will be faithful soldier; I will die at
my post.” It ended by asking, “Are you a faithful witness of the WORD?”
With tears in his eyes and a shaky
voice, he asked the man how he came to start distributing the tracts at the
spot in the Train Station. The busy man, not looking at him, told him of a dead
man who used to stand there come sunshine or rain to distribute tracts. That
for months the man has not been there. He told him that he believed and
concluded that the man must be dead. He said the dead man once gave him a tract
that changed his commitment to Christ. And since the man was dead, he felt God
wanted him to replace the dead man to continue the good work in the memory of
the dead man.
The man kept emphasizing, “The dead
man, The dead man” which further sent Brother Clifford back on his knees
weeping and asking for God’s forgiveness.
Hmmm…….
If you are still reading this, believe
me, God has set you up to read it because He has a purpose for your life.
Have you left your God-giving
assignment because of some discouragement from cynics and critics?
Have you abandoned the unheard,
unseen and unsung praise of heaven for the standing ovation of man?
Are you the evangelist in a choir
robe? Or are you like the singer singing to entertain in church? The place of
entertainment is in the theatre, not in church. The church is for ministration of
the Word in the Spirit and worshipping God in The Spirit and The Truth.
OUR GOD IS A GOD OF SECOND CHANCE.
REPENT AND RETURN TODAY TO YOUR FIRST LOVE.
“For God is not unjust. He will not
forget how hard you have worked for Him and how you have shown your love to Him
by caring for other believers, as you still do.” (Heb. 6:10 NLT)
AUTHOR UNKNOWN
KBA TRACTS
09011087944
E-mail: kbatracts@gmail.com
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