“What… am… I… doing… here?” In the middle of the rocking worship music and excited crowd, the dark thought seemed to instantly land on me trying to sink claws of depressive discouraging feelings into my vulnerable soul. As I looked around, suddenly feeling alone, I entertained that thought for a split second and immediately heard, “You are here for Me,” and there was no doubt where the original voice came from, or the second.
Haven’t we each felt and heard something similar? Maybe more often than we’d like to admit? That uncomfortable aloneness, out-of-place, you-don’t-belong-here nor-will-you-make-a-difference feeling? Thoughts of doubt and incompatibility for the task at hand weighing a little too heavily on the heart?
“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand.” John 10:27-28.
Yes, I knew that second voice, the one that spoke with love and surety, shoring up my purpose and confident presence in the spirit-filled theater that night. We are not merely physical beings as some may believe, here for a brief time to live out the fullest of our selfish pleasures, and then to die and be poured into the ground with such sudden finality. We are physical and spiritually eternal beings. Jesus states it again in John 17:3, in His own words to His Father,
“Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.”
Do we comprehend these loaded statements? Eternal LIFE is given by Christ. Eternal LIFE is to know the only true God, and Jesus Christ. If knowing Him is eternal life, we are faced with understanding that not knowing Him is eternal death.
God is not a man that He should lie (Numbers 23:19), so why do we not listen when 1 John 4 tells us (more than once) that God is love, and Genesis 1:27 tells us that we are made in His image? As spoken by Kris Vallotton at that Bethel Worship Night, God is the creator, Jesus is the model, and you are the image! Dwell on that for awhile.
So why was I there? I was there for Him. I was there for love. I was there to hand out a few packets – life-changing connection packets that would provide new relationships. Relationships that will assure needy children, and parents holding onto a thread of hope, that despite their circumstances they are loved by a loving and caring God. Relationships that will lead them to know that they are known by God. They will know that God sees them and has plans for their futures. Good plans. Eternal plans. That is why I was there. The tall curly-haired leader of volunteers had shared a goal of 80 sponsorships for the night. The final count came in at 139. I am overwhelmed.
My prayer for you is that you will recognize His love for you today, and that you will know His voice, hearing it more clearly as you take time to acknowledge Him.
If you’ve ever been curious about sponsorship through Compassion International, take a moment to look at their website, www.compassion.com. Consider the lives that could be transformed through you!