Do you ever get the feeling that the glory of the Lord is about to be revealed in the next stall, and you're just there as a marking beacon or something?
I mean, what are we but individuals in our own cooped-up bathroom stall, only able to share what's written on our side of the wall?
God has blessed me tonight by dropping in my lap a tremendous witnessing opportunity. You never hear about nonbelievers coming to ask you about their spiritual questions. I've never known anyone to just approach me and ask me how to get to heaven, how to know with certainty that when they die they will not go to hell.
Sharing one's faith is usually like being the pitcher on a baseball field; you spend all your time throwing out the ball but you never expect much of it. Of course, every now and then you strike a batter out, but how often does someone throw you the ball?
Last night, a friend of mine from the French Club, he asked me if I was a Christian. Until very recently, he'd been commenting on my more biblical Facebook statuses with what I perceived as a sarcastic tone. When he asked me if I was a Christian, I told him I was, and then I asked him if he was.
He answered that he was Catholic, but really believed a hodge-podge of things. He told me he asked because he wanted me to pray for him, because he was genuinely afraid. His digestive system had stopped working altogether, and as his body grew weaker and weaker, he realized that he might die soon. He wanted someone who was obviously closer to God than he was to pray for him, because his praying wasn't doing much.
He had surgery yesterday morning. No change in his condition.
Growing up Catholic, he described to me all the traditions he'd been taught to accept as truth, namely "the sacraments, baptism penance, contrition, holy communion, extreme unction."
I did my best to explain that while those things have their place, they are not what saves a person in the end. I got the impression John believed he could work off his sins by feeling sorry enough for all he had done that whatever he did would be absolved.
I explained Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, quoted Jesus's "small is the gate and narrow is the door" statement, and then explained that whoever believes in Jesus will not perish but have eternal life. I told him there was nothing we could do to save ourselves, but that it was by faith alone in the freely given grace of God through the blood of Jesus that we are saved.
It was hard to tell how much of it sunk in because we were talking through text messages because that's all he had the energy to do.
Eventually, I began to feel John needed more encouragement than explanation. I told him the story of Lazarus the sick. He found it hard to believe that Jesus would be so bold in his power. He said he thought that Jesus was more humble than that. I explained to him that he was, that when Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, the whole story revolved around the idea of "I could do it, but I want you to see it's God the Father doing it through me."
We stopped talking at exactly 12:30. I cannot say if John found God, but I believe he found peace for the time being. I will post an update as soon as I know how he's doing. Your prayers are appreciated.
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