Is God even remotely interested in our problems?
Is God even remotely interested in your problems?
We all need to hear a faith building story occasionally to keep us focused on the bigger picture, and that is that God is bigger than our circumstances and He is interested in our individual trials.
While my wife Ruth was teaching Bible school near Nairobi, Kenya she had an interesting student by the name of Samuel. Samuel came from Northern Kenya and was from a Muslim family. His father had four wives with 21 children so far.
One day during break Ruth sat down with him to get his testimony.
Samuel married a girl from his village while he was in the Kenyan Air Force. After his wife delivered their first child she went insane. She had to be tied to her bed with ropes around her wrists and around her neck because she was wild and could not be restrained.
Samuel tried every doctor that was available, both medical and psychiatric doctors, from all over the country of Kenya. He spent a lot of money for doctors. They all told him the same thing, she was insane and there was nothing that could be done for her. She would only get worse and he should abandon her and think of the child.
One day about five months after the birth of his child a man came to his military base and asked for him by name. Samuel found him at the front gate and after a short conversation the stranger asked Samuel if he could go home with him. Samuel wasn’t in the habit of entertaining visitors because of his wife’s condition plus he had never seen this man before and had no idea who he even was.
Samuel gave him a meal and then the man asked Samuel if he would go to church with him the next day, which was Sunday. At that point Samuel said that he was so desperate that he would try anything so he agreed. It was getting late in the day and the man asked if he could spend the night with Samuel and then go to church together tomorrow. The next day they walked to church together and as they approached the church the man left Samuel alone and went somewhere else where Samuel couldn’t see him. Samuel has never seen the man since that morning.
Samuel said that he had no idea what the service was about because he sat there and cried during the whole service.
Samuel went home after the service and as he arrived home and walked into the house he saw his wife sitting on the edge of the bed. He asked the woman who took care of his wife why she was untied. The woman replied that she asked a while ago if she could be untied because she felt better.
Samuel couldn’t wait to get to church the next Sunday. The pastor asked if there were any visitors and Samuel stood and asked for prayer. They told him to come forward and they laid hands on him and prayed for him. Samuel was born again during that service. Samuel went home and when he walked into the house his wife was sitting in front of the mirror combing her hair. She had not done anything to herself since the baby was born five months ago; she had to be taken care of by someone else.
From that time on Samuel’s wife has led a normal life and is completely well. To this day she still has the rope marks around her wrists and neck.
His wife had planned to go to Bible school with Samuel but she got pregnant and has put that idea aside.
Samuel transferred to our Bible school from another school so he could get a four-year degree. He had plans to go back to his village and preach to the Muslim people.
Ruth had a soft spot in her heart for Samuel and from what she told me Samuel had a lot of respect for her as well. He was one of the nicest fellows you could ever meet. He has a very gentle spirit and a very good sense of humor.
Samuel had been dead for 15 years in the eyes of his family. When he had become a Christian his father disowned him as a son and vowed to never speak to him again. In many Muslim families if a member becomes a Christian, they actually hold a funeral service for the member who has defected.
I asked Samuel to contact me when he graduated from Bible school and was ready to go back to his home village to minister. He contacted me one summer and told me that he wanted to start a church in Nairobi and make trips into Muslim territory to minister.
A friend of mine had asked me to recommend someone in Africa who needed some monetary help to set up a ministry. I put the two together and Samuel began to receive support from our friend.
Later that fall I received an e-mail from Samuel telling me that he had recently made a trip to his hometown to hold a weekend seminar to strengthen any Christians who would come and preach the gospel to the non-Christians.
The results of the weekend were nothing short of fantastic. Several Christians came to be ministered to and to rededicate their lives to living for Jesus. During the weekend one-person came forward to receive Jesus as their Savior, you probably guessed it, that person was Samuel’s father. Samuel had not seen his father for 15 years. Can you imagine the high excitement when he saw his Father receive Jesus?
Samuel’s father was a Muslim leader in the village and had over 30 families under him as their leader. Samuel’s father now holds classes in his home on Sundays, but he is not teaching Muslim law, he is teaching them from the Bible.
The following is from a weekly update called “Friday Fax.”
“Africa is more open for the gospel than it has ever been,”
reports DAWN Africa Coordinator Danie Vermeulen. “Thousands
of Muslims are finding Christ, and some of the most exciting
church planting movements are among Muslims. Civil wars, AIDS
and political repression are other factors leading growing numbers to be open for the gospel…”
These are exciting times for us Christians as we are going to see the “Spirit poured out upon all flesh,” (Joel 2:28) as we have never seen it since the days of the “Book of Acts.
The writer of the Book of Hebrews made a comment about this phenomenon when he wrote, “Stay on good terms with each other, held together by love. Be ready with a meal or a bed when it’s needed. Why, some have extended hospitality to angels without even knowing it.” Hebrews 13:1&2
Keep the faith brothers and sisters.
We all need to hear a faith building story occasionally to keep us focused on the bigger picture, and that is that God is bigger than our circumstances and He is interested in our individual trials.
While my wife Ruth was teaching Bible school near Nairobi, Kenya she had an interesting student by the name of Samuel. Samuel came from Northern Kenya and was from a Muslim family. His father had four wives with 21 children so far.
One day during break Ruth sat down with him to get his testimony.
Samuel married a girl from his village while he was in the Kenyan Air Force. After his wife delivered their first child she went insane. She had to be tied to her bed with ropes around her wrists and around her neck because she was wild and could not be restrained.
Samuel tried every doctor that was available, both medical and psychiatric doctors, from all over the country of Kenya. He spent a lot of money for doctors. They all told him the same thing, she was insane and there was nothing that could be done for her. She would only get worse and he should abandon her and think of the child.
One day about five months after the birth of his child a man came to his military base and asked for him by name. Samuel found him at the front gate and after a short conversation the stranger asked Samuel if he could go home with him. Samuel wasn’t in the habit of entertaining visitors because of his wife’s condition plus he had never seen this man before and had no idea who he even was.
Samuel gave him a meal and then the man asked Samuel if he would go to church with him the next day, which was Sunday. At that point Samuel said that he was so desperate that he would try anything so he agreed. It was getting late in the day and the man asked if he could spend the night with Samuel and then go to church together tomorrow. The next day they walked to church together and as they approached the church the man left Samuel alone and went somewhere else where Samuel couldn’t see him. Samuel has never seen the man since that morning.
Samuel said that he had no idea what the service was about because he sat there and cried during the whole service.
Samuel went home after the service and as he arrived home and walked into the house he saw his wife sitting on the edge of the bed. He asked the woman who took care of his wife why she was untied. The woman replied that she asked a while ago if she could be untied because she felt better.
Samuel couldn’t wait to get to church the next Sunday. The pastor asked if there were any visitors and Samuel stood and asked for prayer. They told him to come forward and they laid hands on him and prayed for him. Samuel was born again during that service. Samuel went home and when he walked into the house his wife was sitting in front of the mirror combing her hair. She had not done anything to herself since the baby was born five months ago; she had to be taken care of by someone else.
From that time on Samuel’s wife has led a normal life and is completely well. To this day she still has the rope marks around her wrists and neck.
His wife had planned to go to Bible school with Samuel but she got pregnant and has put that idea aside.
Samuel transferred to our Bible school from another school so he could get a four-year degree. He had plans to go back to his village and preach to the Muslim people.
Ruth had a soft spot in her heart for Samuel and from what she told me Samuel had a lot of respect for her as well. He was one of the nicest fellows you could ever meet. He has a very gentle spirit and a very good sense of humor.
Samuel had been dead for 15 years in the eyes of his family. When he had become a Christian his father disowned him as a son and vowed to never speak to him again. In many Muslim families if a member becomes a Christian, they actually hold a funeral service for the member who has defected.
I asked Samuel to contact me when he graduated from Bible school and was ready to go back to his home village to minister. He contacted me one summer and told me that he wanted to start a church in Nairobi and make trips into Muslim territory to minister.
A friend of mine had asked me to recommend someone in Africa who needed some monetary help to set up a ministry. I put the two together and Samuel began to receive support from our friend.
Later that fall I received an e-mail from Samuel telling me that he had recently made a trip to his hometown to hold a weekend seminar to strengthen any Christians who would come and preach the gospel to the non-Christians.
The results of the weekend were nothing short of fantastic. Several Christians came to be ministered to and to rededicate their lives to living for Jesus. During the weekend one-person came forward to receive Jesus as their Savior, you probably guessed it, that person was Samuel’s father. Samuel had not seen his father for 15 years. Can you imagine the high excitement when he saw his Father receive Jesus?
Samuel’s father was a Muslim leader in the village and had over 30 families under him as their leader. Samuel’s father now holds classes in his home on Sundays, but he is not teaching Muslim law, he is teaching them from the Bible.
The following is from a weekly update called “Friday Fax.”
“Africa is more open for the gospel than it has ever been,”
reports DAWN Africa Coordinator Danie Vermeulen. “Thousands
of Muslims are finding Christ, and some of the most exciting
church planting movements are among Muslims. Civil wars, AIDS
and political repression are other factors leading growing numbers to be open for the gospel…”
These are exciting times for us Christians as we are going to see the “Spirit poured out upon all flesh,” (Joel 2:28) as we have never seen it since the days of the “Book of Acts.
The writer of the Book of Hebrews made a comment about this phenomenon when he wrote, “Stay on good terms with each other, held together by love. Be ready with a meal or a bed when it’s needed. Why, some have extended hospitality to angels without even knowing it.” Hebrews 13:1&2
Keep the faith brothers and sisters.
posted by Jim Burton at 3:01 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home