Participants: Brenda Walsh
Series Code: 13HC
Program Code: 13HC000004
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00:46 Amen. Thank you for joining us in another presentation
00:49 here in the 3ABN Worship Center. 00:51 Also the Thompsonville church meets in this place. 00:55 So if you're in the general area of Thompsonville, we'd like to 00:58 invite you to join us for worship here in Thompsonville. 01:01 We are on Route 149. 01:03 Just before you get to Route 34 you will see 01:06 3ABN Worship Center Thompsonville SDA church 01:09 on the left if you're coming from the West Frankfort area. 01:12 If you're coming from another area, 01:14 you're going to have to... Route 34 either way east or west 01:17 you're going to have to turn right if you're coming from 01:20 Benton area. You're going to have to turn left if you're 01:23 coming from the Galatia area 01:26 and then we will be on the right if you're coming from that 01:28 direction. But here we meet on Wednesday night 01:31 at 7 PM... so come before 7... 01:34 and Sabbath mornings beginning at 9:15 AM 01:37 we are worshiping God's holy name here. 01:38 Whether you're watching on television or listening to 01:41 3ABN Radio you are welcome to come. 01:43 And of course, anyone else in the rest of the world 01:46 if you happen to be nearby come and join us. 01:49 We welcome you from wherever you're watching, 01:51 be it in a hospital, a prison, in your home, 01:55 visiting someone, or you're listening. 01:57 We encourage you to stay by and be blessed during 02:00 3ABN's Fall Camp Meeting. 02:02 Our speaker during this hour is Sr. Brenda Walsh, 02:05 and she has a message from her heart to bring to us. 02:09 Brenda Walsh, if you remember, is the host and producer 02:13 of Kids' Time programs. 02:14 Now I don't see too many children here 02:17 but I would like to see by a show of hands how many 02:19 of you watch Kids' Time? 02:23 Well... look at that! 02:24 Just about every hand went up. 02:26 So we see that Kids' Time also has appeal to those that 02:30 are beyond 12 years old so we'll say that. 02:33 So we praise the Lord for that. 02:35 Sr. Brenda Walsh is also an author. Has written several 02:38 books and is a speaker that is going across the nation 02:43 bringing God's message to different people 02:45 and encouraging people to follow Jesus. 02:47 So you can notice as you watch Kids' Time 02:50 or in any participation that there is a joy 02:54 in the Lord about Sr. Brenda. 02:56 And she has what they call "contagious enthusiasm" 03:00 so we hope you will receive that inspiration. 03:05 We'd like to go to the Lord in prayer at this time 03:07 to ask for the Lord's blessing. 03:09 Let us pray together. 03:10 I'd like to invite you to stand if it's possible for you. 03:17 Let us pray. 03:20 Our loving heavenly Father, 03:22 we thank you so much, Lord, that we can come 03:26 before You and we can come with the assurance that 03:30 he that cometh to You You will in no wise cast out. 03:34 We ask for Your blessing as we have this meeting together 03:38 and we pray that You will bless Sr. Brenda with the Holy Spirit. 03:43 That as we hear her share 03:47 we will hear a message of hope, encouragement, 03:51 and a message from heaven. 03:53 We pray for a blessing upon everyone here 03:55 and upon those that are joining us 03:58 in different parts of the world. 04:00 We ask You for these blessings in Jesus' name, Amen. 04:04 You may be seated. 04:05 Sr. Brenda Walsh will be presenting a message 04:08 that has an interesting title 04:11 and it's a title that caught my attention. 04:14 It's called Bend Me, Shape Me, Any Way You Want Me. 04:20 So at this time I'd like to invite Sr. Brenda Walsh 04:22 to be with you, and she will have the rest of the time 04:25 to share God's Word. God's blessings upon you. 04:29 Thank you Pastor Dinzey. 04:31 Hello everyone! It's so good to be here together 04:34 and praising the Lord today, isn't it? Amen! 04:37 I want to share with you 04:40 there is no greater joy than sharing Jesus. Amen? 04:45 In fact, I think there is no greater joy 04:48 than seeing the results of sharing Jesus 04:52 and seeing that smile on someone's face 04:55 when they receive that Blessed Hope. When they realize 04:59 they have a Savior. It's amazing! 05:03 You know, we as Christians should be the happiest group 05:06 of people on earth. 05:08 In fact, my Daddy always used to tell me 05:10 since I was a real little girl he'd say: 05:13 "If you love Jesus, notify your face. " 05:18 And really and truly you show me a person that 05:21 is so down and depressed and I'll show you someone that's 05:25 not working hard enough for Jesus... 05:27 somebody that's not really out there soul witnessing 05:31 and thinking about others. 05:34 Because you just can't be depressed when you're out 05:36 serving the Lord, can you? 05:39 I love witnessing. 05:42 God gives us so many opportunities to witness. 05:44 And I hear from so many people that tell me: "Oh, I really 05:47 want to serve the Lord... I do, but I just... 05:50 I just don't know what I can do. " 05:53 In fact, one of the... I was speaking at a church one Sabbath 05:57 and at the end of the church service a well-dressed gentleman 06:01 stopped me and said: "Could I have a minute of your time? " 06:04 And he introduced himself as a physician in the area 06:06 and he said: "You know, " he said, "for years now, " 06:09 he said, "I lay awake at night you know trying to think about 06:12 what it is that God wants me to do. " 06:15 He said: "I just don't know what it is that I'm supposed to do. 06:19 I want to serve the Lord and I like hearing you talk about 06:21 serving the Lord, but I just don't know what to do. 06:25 I just can't figure it out. " 06:27 And you know what I told him? I said: "That's your problem! " 06:30 I said: "You're not supposed to figure it out. 06:33 God's already got it all figured out! " 06:36 You see, if you really want to serve Jesus 06:39 it starts with surrender. 06:41 It starts with surrendering your will to God's will 06:46 to allow Him to use you any way He wants to use you. 06:51 Thus, the topic for my seminar presentation today 06:54 Bend Me, Shape Me, Any Way You Want Me. 06:58 That's the way we want to be if we want God to use us 07:01 for His honor and glory. 07:04 It can't be all about what we want to do. 07:06 It can't be all the things in our comfort zone 07:08 that we feel good about. 07:10 We can't just sit there and plan out "Well I think 07:13 I'd like to do that" or "I'm pretty good about doing this. 07:15 I could do this to serve the Lord. " 07:17 Or you know: "I really don't... I'm not a people person. 07:21 I don't want to be a greeter at the door 07:22 but you know I don't mind being on the phone ministry 07:27 calling people. " You know what? 07:29 It's not about what we want to do. 07:31 It's not about what we're good at. 07:34 It's about what God has planned for us to do. 07:39 When I was first asked to produce Kids' Time 07:42 the very first words out of my mouth I'm ashamed to say 07:45 was: "I'm not a producer. I don't know what to do that. 07:48 I can't do that. 07:50 I'm a registered nurse. I don't know anything about producing. 07:53 I've been on television with my sisters cooking 07:55 and singing but I'm not a producer! " 07:58 And then I heard the Holy Spirit say to me: 08:00 "Brenda, did you really mean it when you told Me I could use you 08:05 however I wanted to use you? " 08:08 And let me tell you: immediately 08:12 I asked God to forgive me. 08:14 "Lord please. Lord, I'm so sorry. 08:18 Yes, I want You to use me. Lord, please forgive me. 08:21 I'm so sorry. I don't want to be that way any more. 08:24 Lord, I want You to use me however You want to use me... 08:27 however that is. " 08:29 And God took a willing heart. 08:35 And that was 14 years ago. 08:40 Kids' Time has been on every single day for 13 years. 08:45 We started a Bible study club for children and today 08:48 we have over 25,000 children enrolled in Bible studies 08:53 from over 100 different countries around the world. 08:55 Amen? Amen! Now that's what God can do. 08:59 That wasn't what Brenda can do. That's what God does. 09:04 You see the difference? 09:05 Now if I was willing just to stay in my comfort zone 09:08 and say: "OK Lord, I'm a nurse. I can't do that. 09:11 I don't know anything about that. " 09:12 It doesn't matter what we know. 09:14 It doesn't matter what our talents are. 09:16 God is never going to call us to do something 09:20 that He isn't going to give us every single thing we need 09:23 to get that job done. 09:25 And we don't have to be afraid! 09:28 We can trust Jesus. Our God is trustworthy. Amen? 09:33 I love that about God because God sees the big picture. 09:37 He is looking at the whole big picture 09:41 and we see this much of it. 09:42 We can't possibly know what is good or what we should be doing 09:47 here or what we should be saying here. 09:49 We can't know. 09:51 I had some people tell me... They said: "Well you know I... 09:55 I can't give a Bible study. I don't know anything about 09:59 that. " You know there are so many wonderful ways out there 10:02 that you can share God's Word. 10:04 Sometimes God is calling you to witness by a smile. 10:06 By just being friendly. 10:10 Maybe it is all He wants you to do is smile at somebody 10:14 that you saw in line at the grocery store. 10:16 And you just look at somebody and they seem a little dejected 10:19 and you want to go over to them and you just want to give them 10:21 a smile and say: "You know I just want you to know 10:24 Jesus loves you. I'd love for you to come to our church 10:27 this week. Would you like to come? " 10:30 Do you know that I have talked to so many people 10:33 that shared with me that the reason... the biggest reason... 10:38 they never came to church is nobody ever invited them. 10:41 Now don't raise your hands but how many here 10:44 have invited somebody to church this week? 10:47 How many people did you invite - you personally invited 10:50 whether it was a stranger, whether it was somebody 10:52 you know, that you know... a neighbor - 10:55 did you invite somebody to church this week? 10:58 What about last week? The week before? 11:01 You see sometimes it's just something simple. 11:04 Other times God may lead you into a whole conversation 11:07 and you don't have to worry about what you're going to say. 11:09 God will give you the words to say. 11:11 Isn't He amazing? I love how He does that! 11:14 God will lead you every step of the way. 11:17 We just need to trust Him. 11:20 One of the key ingredients 11:24 of really being a soul witnessing tool for Jesus 11:28 is what my Grandma used to always say: "prayed up. " 11:33 She'd say: "Honey, you've got to be prayed up. " 11:34 And that means we have to have a prayer relationship 11:38 with our Lord and Savior. 11:39 We have to have a constant communication. 11:41 We need to be filled and pray for an extra pouring of 11:45 God's Holy Spirit into our hearts and our lives 11:48 because guess what? We cannot share what we do not have. 11:52 We must be filled up with the Holy Spirit. 11:55 And God loves to do that for His children. 11:58 You see, God has commissioned each one of us to be ministers. 12:02 He doesn't just use your pastor of your church. 12:05 Each one of us He tells us to "Go ye therefore 12:08 and spread the gospel. " 12:09 That means every one of us 12:11 have a responsibility to work for Jesus. 12:14 And He has a different plan on how we do that 12:17 for each one of us. 12:19 We aren't going to know that plan unless we ask God 12:22 to come into our hearts and lives and lead us 12:26 every step of the way. 12:27 You don't have to be afraid. 12:30 Jesus has an incredible plan for you 12:35 and He's not going to let you down. 12:37 There are so many opportunities that I get all the time 12:41 to witness. In fact, I get a lot of time in airplanes 12:45 because I fly so much. I speak somewhere around the world 12:48 in a church almost every weekend 12:52 and so I get many chances to witness. 12:54 Do you know I keep a Bible study guide 12:57 in my Bible and I take my Bible with me 13:01 so that I have on my plane in my carry-on luggage 13:03 that I put underneath the seat in front of me. 13:08 I scoot that in there. 13:10 Whenever God is impressing me to give a Bible study 13:12 I can pull my Bible out because people invariably will say... 13:15 You know, when I start talking to them they'll say: 13:19 "Well this this and this and this. " And I'll say: 13:20 "Well you know before we get going 13:23 it doesn't matter what I think or what I say, 13:25 let's see what the Bible says. " 13:27 Now that makes a big difference. I pull my Bible out. 13:30 And I will share with you I do not have 13:34 the gift of memorizing scripture 13:37 like my Dad does or my sister Linda does 13:39 or so many of you may. 13:41 It's not my gift. I will get it messed up every time. 13:45 I can remember a million other things 13:47 but for whatever reason it's not my gift. 13:50 And so there will be many time when I'm getting ready to 13:53 speak somewhere and a text has slipped my mind. 13:56 I know what I wanted to say and I'll call Daddy and I'll say 13:59 "Daddy" I'll say, "I'm trying to find that text. I've spent 14:01 ten minutes and I can't find it. " And I said: "It's the one 14:04 that says... and he'll rattle it off to me just like that. 14:06 "Oh, thank you Daddy. " 14:08 You know? I wish I could so that's why my Bible is 14:11 so marked up. I keep a marker because I try 14:14 to find those texts easily. 14:15 But guess what? God doesn't expect me to 14:18 memorize all those texts. 14:20 And so I put together... In fact, I put together - 14:24 it says Brenda Walsh Ministries - 14:26 a Bible study guide. It's not any bigger than the... 14:28 than the size of a church bulletin. 14:31 You can slip it right in your Bible. 14:32 You can give a Bible study on just about any thing 14:36 you would want to give a Bible study about right here. 14:38 And so when someone's asking you what happens when you die 14:41 I go right to the part about death and I just start 14:44 you know going down and seeing what the Bible says 14:46 one right after the other. 14:48 I have never - and this is the truth - 14:50 I have never had to get through all those text before someone 14:52 stops me and goes: "Uh... 14:55 my mom is not in heaven, is she? 14:57 You don't have to read any more. " 14:59 I mean it is a wonderful incredible study guide. 15:03 And in fact I asked them to put that on the screen for you 15:05 because if you go to my website... I wanted to make this 15:09 available to everyone absolutely free. 15:11 So you can go to my website www. brendawalsh. com 15:14 and you can download it yourself. Print it off, 15:16 fold it up, put it in your Bible. 15:18 And you have no excuses now, so you can give a Bible study too! 15:23 And so just www. brendawalsh. com 15:25 and you can get your own Bible study guide. 15:27 There are so many ways that God allows us to witness for Him. 15:33 One of the ways... Three years ago 15:36 God impressed me to start posting a daily devotion 15:39 on Facebook. How many Facebook friends do I have out there? 15:43 Quite a few of you I can see. 15:45 Well you can go... They only let you have 5,000 friends 15:48 on Facebook, so I started so it's Brenda Walsh 15:51 and then I started another one called Brenda Walsh Ministries 15:54 'cause it's unlimited on that one. 15:56 And then you can... I post on both the same devotion 15:59 every single day. I haven't missed in 3 years. 16:02 And I can tell you that every single day somebody - 16:07 and I'm sure my Facebook friends will tell you this - 16:09 will post that "Wow! This was meant just for me. " 16:13 "This really hits the nail on the head for me today. " 16:16 "This is what I needed today. " 16:17 Now I'm going to share with you: there are days that 16:20 you know what I'm tired or I'm busy or I'm in a hurry 16:23 and I want... I'm tempted... You know, the enemy will 16:27 tempt me: "Brenda, you might have to skip it today. " 16:29 I'm so busy. 16:31 But that's not God's plan, is it? 16:34 And I never want to be too busy to do what God wants me to do. 16:37 And every single day that I have been tempted 16:40 to skip my Facebook devotional 16:43 God has shown me over and over again why He wanted me to do it. 16:47 You see, God is gonna be there 16:50 every step of the way. You are not on a ministry, you know, 16:54 by yourself. You're not on your own road... 16:57 Jesus is walking with you. 16:59 And so you don't have to be afraid! 17:02 Just as God: "What is the plan You have for my life, Lord? " 17:05 "What is it You want me to do? " 17:08 "Lord, I... " God knows you inside and out. 17:11 I talk to Jesus. He is my best friend. 17:13 I tell Him everything. 17:14 And I tell Him if I'm scared; I tell Him if I'm nervous. 17:18 I tell Him: "Lord, do You really want me to do that? " 17:22 You know, and I want to always do what God wants me to do. 17:28 In fact several years ago I started adding something 17:31 to my prayer life that I started praying and asking God 17:34 to make me instant to His will. 17:37 I don't want to second guess what the Holy Spirit 17:40 is speaking to me. I don't want to go: 17:42 "Oh, You didn't really mean that Lord" 17:43 and just keep on going. 17:45 No! I want to be instant to God's will. 17:47 I want to do whatever He wants me to do right then. 17:49 I might miss an incredible witnessing opportunity. 17:52 So it's an important thing to pray - don't you think? - 17:55 is that God makes us instant to His will. 17:59 And He's never ever going to leave us out there hanging. 18:02 You know, several years ago 18:07 I was here taping back-to-back programs. 18:11 That means I had a week of taping 18:13 and the next week taping as well. 18:15 And I usually would either be speaking at a church 18:18 that weekend or I would be going home. 18:21 And this particular weekend my husband was going to be gone 18:25 traveling and I thought "Why should I drive 6 hours home 18:28 for one day and then 6 hours back 18:31 to... because I'd have to come right back. 18:33 If my husband's not going to be there, I might as well 18:35 just stay here and rest. " 18:37 I don't get to do that a lot. I don't have a lot of down time. 18:40 And so I was really excited about that. 18:42 I thought: "I am just going to stay here in my little 3ABN 18:45 apartment and I'm just going to have a nice quiet Sabbath. " 18:49 And Sabbath morning I got up. 18:53 Was having my cereal. I was sitting there 18:56 in my bathrobe watching Kids' Time. 18:58 I never get to see that either. 19:00 I'm so busy producing programs I rarely get to see them. 19:03 And so I was watching and I said: "Oh, you know what, Lord? 19:06 I think I'm just going to stay here today. 19:08 I'm not going to go to church. 19:09 I think I just want to be in my bathrobe. 19:11 I'm going to watch Kids' Time. I can watch 3ABN for my church. 19:15 You guys have never thought anything like that, right? 19:17 And you would never even think those thoughts, but I was 19:20 saying, I said: "You know I just am so comfortable 19:23 I never get any down time and I can have a extra-long worship 19:27 with You, Lord. I can just enjoy a nice quiet 19:30 day with just You. Oh, oh, wouldn't that be wonderful? " 19:33 And I started to settle into my comfortable chair. 19:35 And I'm still eating my cereal, watching Kids' Time. 19:38 And all of a sudden I heard the Holy Spirit say to me: 19:41 "Brenda, get out of that chair and get ready to go to church. 19:47 I want you in church today! " 19:48 And that voice was so loud in my head I literally... 19:52 I put my cereal down - almost splattered it - 19:54 I jumped out of my chair. I ran and I got in the shower, 19:57 got dressed, and I mean I knew God wanted me in church 20:01 even though I was really wanting to be - you know - 20:04 in my little apartment playing hooky. 20:06 Well, I got into church... And I came into church 20:12 and Pastor John Lomacang was already up in front. 20:14 And I'm... You know, my dad's a preacher 20:17 so being a pastor's daughter I know you're supposed to be 20:20 early to church not late to church. 20:22 And so they're already doing the announcements 20:24 so I know I'm late. And I thought: "Well I'll just 20:26 skooch in and nobody's going to know. " 20:28 And so I skooched in the back and I a chair down on the end 20:32 that was empty and there was no one on that row. 20:36 And I thought: "I'll just quietly get in. " 20:37 But just as I'm walking up the aisle Pastor Lomacang 20:40 says: "And we're so excited that Miss Brenda's joined us 20:43 today. " So much for sneaking in. 20:48 So I sat down and I was like you know: "Oh Lord, I'm sorry 20:53 I was late. I don't know what I was thinking. 20:55 That was so selfish. Please forgive me. " 20:58 So I'm sitting there. I get my Bible out. 21:01 I get my highlighter out in case pastor's got any 21:03 texts I want to underline. 21:04 And I'm getting ready there to enjoy the service. 21:06 About that time Jay Christian 21:10 who is head of our 3ABN Radio 21:12 he was sitting about 2 rows behind me. 21:15 He got up and came and sat by me. 21:17 And he whispered in my ear. He said: "Miss Brenda, " 21:20 he said, "there is a lady on my row - sitting on my row - 21:24 that is crying. " He said: "Do you think after the service 21:27 you could maybe say something to her? " 21:29 he said, "because she probably needs a woman's touch. " 21:33 And I said: "Well sure. " I said "How will I know who she is? " 21:36 And he said: "Well, she's sitting in the middle of my row, 21:40 I'm two rows behind you" 21:41 and he said: "and she's wearing pretty shoes. " 21:44 I was pretty impressed that he'd notice that! 21:46 And so I said: "OK, I'd be happy to. " 21:50 So he gets up and goes back to his pew. 21:53 And I'm sitting there now getting ready for church 21:56 and all of a sudden I heard the Holy Spirit speak to me 21:59 saying: "Brenda, go sit with her NOW! " 22:03 And it was so loud, it was so real 22:06 I literally shot up out of my chair. 22:08 I grabbed my purse, grabbed my Bible. 22:09 My highlighter went flying across the floor. 22:12 I didn't even go get it. I jumped up; I turned around, 22:14 I walked down to where Jay was sitting. 22:16 I crossed in front of him. I went down the middle of the row. 22:19 And sure enough, there's this beautiful woman 22:21 with blonde hair and she's got the most gorgeous 22:25 turquoise shoes on. 22:27 And so I passed over in front of her 22:30 and I moved her Bible that was setting on the seat 22:33 and I put my arm around her 22:36 and I said: "I want you to know Jesus loves you 22:39 and I'm your friend. " 22:41 "Jesus loves you and I'm your friend. " 22:44 And you know, tears were streaming down her face. 22:47 And I gave her a big hug. 22:49 And then we started to get into the Word. 22:54 And I said: "What is your name? " And she said: "Rhonda. " 23:00 And I said: "I'm Brenda. " And she said: "I know. " 23:06 And so we started to go through the church service 23:10 and all of a sudden Pastor John asked us to turn in our Bibles 23:14 to a certain text. And right there where we turned 23:18 was a very special bookmark. 23:20 See, these bookmarks... I wrote about them in my book 23:23 called Passionate Prayer. It's under the chapter called 23:26 Margie's Mission. It's the second chapter. 23:28 Some of you nodding: you've read the story of Margie's 23:30 bookmarks. Well, there was a very special bookmark 23:33 that was in there, and I had been praying about that 23:35 particular bookmark. I had been praying that God would 23:38 use that bookmark to win a soul for Him. 23:40 And I would pray and pray and pray and I would say: "Lord, 23:44 is this the person? Is that the person? " 23:46 Many times I've said: "Lord, when do You want me to give 23:47 this bookmark? " We opened the Bible 23:50 and there it is: that bookmark 23:53 and it's right at the text that Pastor John had asked us 23:55 to turn to. And I knew immediately I was supposed to 23:59 give Rhonda that bookmark. 24:01 And I reached in there and I handed the bookmark to Rhonda. 24:04 And she looked at me and she went: "Oooh... " 24:06 and she said: "Margie's bookmarks. " 24:11 And I said: "Yes. " 24:12 And I said: "How did you know? " 24:15 And she said: "I read your book. " 24:18 And I gave her another big hug. 24:20 We ended up with the church service 24:24 and at the end of the service before the closing song 24:28 I whispered to her and I said: "Rhonda, would you mind 24:30 if we just? " There was a door over to the side 24:32 and I said: "Would you mind if we just stepped over 24:35 and went inside of there and I could pray with you? " 24:37 And she said: "Yes, I would like that. " 24:40 So before everybody even exited the church 24:43 Rhoda and I slipped across over into that door over there 24:46 and I shut the door. We went over there. 24:49 I put a couple chairs out; we sat down. 24:51 And I said: "Rhonda, what would you like me to pray about? " 24:55 And she started to cry. 24:57 And she said: "I want you to pray that God will give me 25:02 the strength to go to my Sunday-keeping church 25:06 tomorrow and tell them that I will no longer 25:11 be worshiping with them, that I am going to join 25:13 the Seventh-day Adventist church. " 25:16 She said: "You see, God's been working on my heart 25:20 about the seventh-day Sabbath. " And she said: 25:25 "Someone had given me your book Passionate Prayer. " 25:28 And she said: "The Sabbath is so clear. " 25:31 She said: "I knew in my heart. " And she said: 25:33 "And this morning, " she said, "but I've been resisting it 25:36 because I love the Lord with all my heart. " 25:38 You see, Rhonda already had a deep relationship with Jesus. 25:41 She loves... In fact, she was one of the hardest workers 25:44 in her church. And she knew what a void that would be 25:48 in her own little church if she left. And she was struggling. 25:50 And she was saying: "Lord, do You really want me to worship 25:55 on the Sabbath? Does it really matter? " 25:57 And she hears the Holy Spirit telling her: 25:59 "I didn't say 'Go worship on any Sabbath' 26:01 I said MY Sabbath. ' " 26:04 And that morning... Rhonda got up that morning 26:08 and felt impressed that she needed to come here to church. 26:12 But she was scared to come. 26:14 It's hard to come into a church you've never been to before 26:18 by yourself... and especially if it's not your denomination. 26:22 And so she called several friends and nobody would go 26:25 with her. But God didn't let her off the hook. 26:28 He said: "Rhonda, I want you in church today. " 26:32 And so Rhonda - because she listens to the Holy Spirit 26:34 because Rhonda has a deep, committed relationship 26:37 with Jesus - she came. 26:40 But as she was sitting on that row all by herself - 26:43 nobody was sitting near her - 26:46 she began to feel lonely. 26:48 She began to feel just literally sitting there all alone. 26:53 And she literally was sitting there 26:55 and tears had started coming down her cheeks. 26:58 And she literally prayed to the Lord 27:03 "God, if you want me to be here, I need a friend. " 27:08 And she said: "Right then, a second after that was my prayer 27:12 to Jesus, I see you shoot up out of your chair 27:14 like a bullet. " She says: I'm thinking: "What are you doing? " 27:17 And she said: "All of a sudden she's coming right back, 27:20 she passes in front of me, she's moving my Bible. 27:22 She puts her arm around me and the first words out of your 27:25 mouth are: "Jesus loves you and I am your friend. " 27:30 Can I tell you I had no idea 27:33 what was going to come out of my mouth? 27:35 I had no idea what she had prayed. 27:37 There's no possible way I could have known that. 27:40 Are you starting to get the picture that Jesus knows? 27:43 He's got a plan for our life. 27:45 We don't have to figure it out. 27:47 God has a plan. All we have to do is be willing, 27:50 obedient, and joyful about whatever God wants us to do. 27:55 Do you know I had the privilege a short time later 28:00 of being up here right on this very platform 28:06 where our baptismal tank was 28:08 and watching Rhonda be lowered into baptism. 28:14 There is no greater joy than serving Jesus. 28:20 Now I have a story I want to share with you 28:22 but before I share this story 28:24 I want you to know that Rhonda is here with us today. 28:28 And I'd like to introduce Rhonda. Would you stand 28:30 for me, please? Would you mind? 28:32 Rhonda's here today. Rhonda's one the biggest workers 28:35 here in our church. Rhonda, I have shared your story 28:40 to people around the world. 28:41 And this is the very first time I have been able to share this 28:44 story with you here. What a privilege it is. 28:48 And thank you for all you do to allow God to use you 28:52 in such a special way. 28:54 Well today there is part two. 28:57 Would you like to hear part two, the rest of the story? 28:59 Because this is a story that I have not had the privilege of 29:02 telling anyone before 29:04 because this story just happened. 29:07 It's an amazing story. You see, I'm telling this story 29:10 because God has a plan. He looks at the big picture 29:14 and He's moving. And all we have to do is trust Him 29:18 because God used me in a way to minister to Rhonda. 29:24 God used Rhonda and me to minister to somebody else. 29:29 And today I want to tell you that story 29:31 because it's amazing. You see, about 3 weeks ago 29:36 we were here taping Bible stories for Kids' Time. 29:40 Now this is the very first time that we have taped Bible stories 29:43 on an Egypt background as we were telling the story 29:46 of Moses. And so that meant Moses leading His children 29:50 out of Egypt. 29:53 And so all of our sets were all Egyptian theme. 29:58 That meant in make-up it was going to be a nightmare 30:01 because think about all that Egyptian eye make-up 30:04 we had to put on everybody. 30:06 The very first day of taping three weeks ago now 30:09 we're in the make-up room in the wardrobe area 30:15 and we're trying to get this make-up to go on. 30:18 And our make-up is just running. It seems like we can't 30:22 get that eye make-up to stay. 30:23 And we worked hard... all day long we struggled. 30:27 We'd get out on the set and we'd start to tape 30:29 and "Stop! Cut! " We'd have somebody's eye 30:31 that literally just... had dripped down to here. 30:35 And so we'd be like fixing that. 30:38 All day long it was "Stop! Cut! " Oh! 30:41 I was praying my way through it. I'm saying: 30:43 "Lord, what is the matter? " I said... I keep praying: 30:46 "You could fix that eye make-up! 30:48 Can't You just fix it, Lord? " 30:51 You know, I talk to Jesus that way. He's my best friend. 30:53 He knows me. God has a better plan. 30:59 You see I didn't know God had a reason for that make-up 31:02 giving us such a hard time all day. 31:04 That evening after that first day 31:06 I took a group of our Kids' Time volunteers 31:11 out for Chinese food in West Frankfort. 31:12 And afterwards I was going to head down a half an hour 31:15 down to Marion to go to a store and get some different make-up. 31:19 I thought: "Well if I get some waterproof 31:22 eye liner then that will work. " 31:23 But it was already getting late. I was tired 31:27 and I thought: "You know, I'm going to just... " 31:29 And I know the Holy Spirit you see leads and guides 31:31 put the thought in my head 'cause I was already all set 31:34 to go down to Marion. And I said: "You know what? 31:37 I think I'm just going to stop first in West Frankfort 31:40 at the CVS and just see if they have any waterproof eyeliner 31:44 that we can use on these Egyptian eyes. " 31:46 And I said: "That would save me a half hour trip there 31:49 and a half hour trip back. " And so I said: "Lord, 31:52 why don't we just try that? " So I had a group with me 31:56 in my car and we stopped at CVS. 31:59 Now my whole team is looking and we're reading all the labels. 32:02 "Nope, it's not waterproof. Nope, it's not waterproof. " 32:05 I mean, I'm saying: "Lord please, we're all tired. 32:07 Can You just show us where this is? Surely this store's got 32:10 to have somewhere a waterproof eyeliner. " 32:13 About that time someone special... my assistant - her 32:17 name is Melissa Hoffman - her mom is a Bible worker 32:21 in Sanford Gap church near Collegedale, Tennessee, 32:25 and she was helping us out in our Bible stories 32:27 that week, this season 32:30 and so she was helping me look for eyeliner too. 32:33 And she meets a lady - a young lady - that was 32:39 looking at perfume. And the girl turned and looked. 32:43 My assistant's mother's name is Pam. 32:45 She looked at Pam and she goes, she says: "Do you think this 32:47 smells good? " And so Pam you know... She says: "Yeah, 32:51 that smells good. " And Pam's talking to her a little bit. 32:54 And all of a sudden she looked over at me and she goes: 32:57 "What do you think? " And so I walked over. 32:59 Now I never told her I'm really hypersensitive to perfume. 33:02 And so she said: "What do you think? " 33:06 And I: "Oh, that smells nice. " 33:08 And I'm saying: "Lord, please don't let me sneeze. " 33:12 And so I said: "Oh, that smells nice. " 33:14 And we started talking. 33:16 And we all had our black T- shirts on that has the 33:19 Kids' Time logo and on the back of our shirt it says 33:21 Kids' Time crew and it tells what our... 33:24 Our first name is on it and then our job there. 33:26 Mine says producer on the back. 33:28 And we're all in our black shirts so she looked 33:33 and she goes: "What are you guys doing? " 33:34 You know, I guess we did stick out like a sore thumb. 33:37 And so I started sharing with her about the 3ABN, 33:43 our Kids' Time program. I said: "Why don't you, " 33:45 and I know the Holy Spirit was impressing me, 33:48 "why don't you come out tomorrow 33:50 and help us out on the program? 33:52 Why we might even dress you up and put you right out on the 33:54 show! " And she was like: "Really? " 33:57 And I'm like "What kind of nuts are these kinds of people? " 34:00 you know? And I said: "No, no. " So I was telling her 34:03 a little bit about what we did. 34:04 And she said: "Well, you know, that would be fine. " 34:07 I said: "I can have my assistant come by and pick you up 34:09 and take you right there. " 34:10 And Pam says: "Well I'll take her; I'll come pick her up. " 34:13 And so the next day went and picked her up 34:18 and she came out and to our set. And right away we had a spot 34:22 where we needed her; she needed to get those Egyptian eyes. 34:25 And so we dressed her all up in wardrobe. 34:28 She's sitting there in wardrobe 34:30 and I'm working on her make-up. 34:34 Now I've got to tell you this because this is a key part 34:37 of the program - part of my story - because 34:40 I want to show you how God works each step of the way. 34:43 The night before right after I had met this young lady 34:48 I took her before the Lord in prayer. 34:50 I prayed and I prayed and I prayed. 34:53 I prayed that God wouldn't allow anything to stop this 34:57 young lady from coming to help us out on the program. 34:59 I knew with everything inside of me she was supposed to be there. 35:03 And so I started praying and praying and praying 35:06 that God would open the door to make sure she came 35:12 and open her heart. 35:14 I also prayed something I've never prayed before 35:18 this particular thing. I said: "Lord... " I said, 35:20 "I am not here on weekends 35:23 to love and nurture her to You. " 35:26 I said: "I really, Lord... If there's any way 35:30 can You open the door so that Pastor John Lomacang 35:32 can have a chance to meet this young lady? " 35:34 I didn't know if that would be the only chance she'd have 35:37 to meet him, and I know that Pastor Lomacang 35:39 is filled with the Holy Spirit 35:41 and I know that he is the pastor of this church 35:44 and he loves his members. 35:46 Do you know, as I'm putting... The next morning I'm putting 35:50 that make-up on this young lady 35:52 her name is April 35:55 in walks Pastor John Lomacang. 36:00 Now I prayed and I had faith but here... when I actually 36:04 see him in the flesh my mouth about dropped open. 36:06 He has never come into our make-up room before 36:10 uninvited or without a reason... ever. 36:12 So can you imagine my shock on my face 36:16 when I saw here's Pastor Lomacang walking in. 36:19 And I'm thinking: "Oh Lord You have a plan. 36:21 Thank you Jesus! " 36:24 And when I got done I said: "Oh Pastor Lomacang 36:26 I want you to meet April. " And so I'm introducing him 36:29 to April. And then April said something that about made 36:33 my heart stop. She looked up and she said: 36:36 "3ABN saved my life. " 36:40 She'd never mentioned anything about that before! 36:43 I had no idea she'd even known anything about 3ABN. 36:48 And he goes: "Really? How's that? " 36:50 And she said: "Well, your 3ABN ministry team - prison ministry 36:55 team - two years ago, " she says, "I was in prison 36:59 and your church - your 3ABN prison ministry, women's 37:03 ministry team - came to see me every week. " 37:07 And she said: "And I was so angry with God 37:11 I wanted nothing to do with God. I didn't want to pray to Him. 37:15 I didn't want to talk to Him. " 37:19 And she said: "And then one of the women 37:21 in the ministry team looked at me and said: 37:25 "Well don't stop talking to God. 37:27 Just tell God that you're mad at Him. " 37:30 And she said: "I can do that? " 37:33 And this young lady said: "Yeah, you can tell God 37:36 anything! If you're mad at God tell Him you're mad at Him. " 37:40 And do you know, that started me praying again. 37:45 That started me talking to God again. 37:49 And God showed me that it really wasn't Him I was mad at, 37:55 I was mad at myself and all the mistakes I had made. 38:00 Do you know, April came and helped us every single day 38:06 that week... she came and helped us. 38:07 I think she might have missed one day. 38:09 And she was in church that Sabbath. 38:12 She's been in church each Sabbath since. 38:15 And yesterday April shared with me 38:20 that she wants to join our church. 38:22 Amen. Well Amen. You can go ahead and clap for that because 38:26 that's a big Amen. 38:30 And I want to tell you: do you know who that woman was 38:34 on the women's ministry team that told her to go ahead 38:37 and tell God that she was mad at Him? 38:39 That was Rhonda. 38:41 That was Rhonda. 38:43 And I want to introduce to you Rhonda and April 38:46 who are sitting next to each other today. They are here. 38:49 Would you mind both standing? April and Rhonda are here today. 38:53 And isn't it amazing 38:59 how God uses each one of us. 39:01 Now God knew... You can sit down bless your hearts. 39:04 I love you both April and Rhonda. 39:06 And I wanted to share with people around the world 39:09 how God works. 39:11 You see, two... It was more than two years ago 39:16 I don't even know how long it was, Rhonda, when 39:17 God allowed our story to take place. 39:21 How long was it? Four years ago she said. 39:24 And then two years ago God's using Rhonda 39:28 in the same plan He has for April's life 39:31 where He's going to bring me into that. 39:33 Can you see how God works? 39:36 Two years after the fact and God's still working 39:40 and He is putting the pieces to those puzzles to make 39:43 a beautiful picture. Isn't God good? 39:47 Amen! You see, I love how God works that way. 39:50 I love it when you see God's plan unfolding. 39:55 But here's the thing: we don't always know and see God's plan 39:58 unfolding. We can't always... We can't always know. 40:03 Many times it'll be when we get to heaven 40:06 that we're going to even see the fruits of our labor. 40:10 We need to trust Jesus. 40:12 God is not always going to tell us what happens 40:15 or how He used us. 40:17 But I can tell you this: if you're willing to allow God 40:20 to use you He will 40:23 and we just need to trust Him to do it however He wants to do it. 40:29 We want to trust God. All we need to do is say: 40:32 "Lord, bend me, shape me, any way You want me. 40:34 I am Yours. Use me however You want. " 40:39 You see? And He will. 40:40 There are so many many opportunities that God gives us 40:45 all the time and we've just got to trust Him. 40:47 It's a lifestyle change that I'm talking about. 40:50 It's a day-to-day difference in your life. 40:53 It's when you have determined in your heart to surrender 40:56 your heart and life to Him and say: "Lord, 40:58 guide my steps today. " 40:59 Wake up in the morning and say: "Lord, could You give me 41:01 some divine appointments today? " 41:03 "Lord, use me in a special way. " 41:05 "Use me however You want to use me. " 41:08 And then get ready for what God's going to do. 41:11 It might be a telephone call that you make 41:14 and God gives you an opportunity to witness for Him 41:17 to somebody on the phone that you've never even met or seen. 41:19 It might be somebody in line at the grocery store. 41:22 You know, I wrote about in my book Passionate Prayer 41:25 I wrote the story of another young woman that goes to this 41:28 church. I met her in line at Wal-Mart 41:31 and God used that experience to bring Angela into this church. 41:37 You see, God doesn't expect us to do the work. 41:43 We are only the messenger... we are only the tool 41:48 that God can use to bring others closer to Him. 41:51 It's not our job to save souls; that's God's job. 41:58 When God calls us out to be fishers of men He didn't say 42:00 "Go clean the fish. " 42:02 God doesn't want us to go out and try to fix people, 42:05 make them perfect. There are no perfect people. 42:10 But God can take all our imperfections, 42:12 God can take all the ugliness in our lives, 42:15 and He can turn it into good and use it for His honor and glory 42:18 if we are willing, obedient, and joyful about whatever it is 42:22 God wants to... how He wants to use us. 42:26 This year I think I've had about three trips now to Australia. 42:29 In one year... that's a long trip. 42:32 But I've got to tell you: I love my Australian brothers and 42:34 sisters. I've got so many friends there that they 42:37 I land into an airport in Australia I feel like I'm 42:40 going home too. And this last trip 42:44 that I made just a month ago 42:48 I was going to speak for a women's ministries retreat 42:53 in Victoria Conference. 42:56 And for the first time ever 42:59 my mom was going with me on a ministry trip. 43:02 It was the most incredible exciting thing to have my... 43:07 my mom - who had never been with me on a ministry weekend - 43:10 come with me. And it was also her very first time at a women's 43:14 retreat. So for her very first retreat I was her speaker. 43:18 And I was so excited to have this special time with Mom. 43:21 Now selfishly I had another reason I was also glad 43:24 because when you grew up in a family with five kids 43:27 there is no alone-time with your mama. 43:29 And so when Mom and I were talking about it on the flight 43:33 back from Australia that it was probably the most 43:36 alone time I had with her - just Mom and I - 43:39 my whole life. 43:41 We never had that much time just alone with Mom and I. 43:45 And so that was a special gift from God. 43:47 But I was so excited that Mom was coming with me 43:49 on this trip. I wanted to make sure... Mom isn't the seasoned 43:53 flyer that I am so I wanted to make sure 43:55 that she wasn't flying alone. 43:58 So I live in Knoxville. My Mom, you know, 44:01 is in Michigan. So I had her tickets arranged 44:04 so that I would fly from Knoxville to Detroit 44:07 and Mom would meet me in Detroit. She would get... 44:10 That would be the start of her flight. 44:11 We'd be on the same flight from Detroit to L.A.; 44:14 L.A. to Sydney; Sydney to Melbourne. 44:16 And so at no time Mom had to fly alone. 44:20 Well, I'm on the flight from Knoxville to Detroit 44:26 and our flight is delayed. 44:29 And it's delayed. Now I had... making sure... 44:32 I like to be certain. I don't like to be late; 44:35 I want to be sure that nothing could happen. 44:37 I didn't want my Mom to be worried about anything 44:40 so I had planned even a three-hour layover in Detroit 44:43 so there would be no rushing around. 44:45 I wanted it to be very simple for my Mom. 44:47 And now it's getting... we're over an hour delayed. 44:51 Now it's a two-hour delay. 44:53 Now it's an even longer delay and I'm praying and I'm praying 44:55 and I'm praying and I'm saying: "Oh Lord, I know You're 44:58 in charge here but you know Mom's going to be worrying 45:01 and she can't get on that flight without me. 45:05 And Lord, You know where I need to be. " 45:07 Telling God stuff He already knows. 45:13 And so we finally get in. Our flight is about 45:16 already almost 1/2 hour late 45:20 and now we get up to our jet bridge and guess what? 45:25 They can't get the jet bridge to work that's going to come 45:28 to our plane to let us off the plane. 45:31 Now all these people on the plane... I'm sitting up front 45:35 and there's a pilot in front of me that's taking a flight 45:41 to go get a flight somewhere. He was just a passenger 45:44 on this plane. He was sitting in the seat in front of me 45:46 and we talked a little bit before the plane had taken off. 45:50 Now he's the first one up and I'm the next one after him 45:54 'cause I was the second seat. 45:56 And the flight attendant is right in front of him 45:59 and it's a narrow little bitty puddle-jumper plane kind of 46:02 thing. And now all these people behind are all 46:05 agitated and irritated because that jet bridge 46:07 is not there. Everybody's late. 46:10 And so tempers are getting a little hot, and this one 46:13 particular gentleman... he, I think, had been drinking. 46:16 And he was saying things he shouldn't be saying. 46:18 He was screaming at that flight attendant. 46:19 Now it's not her fault. 46:21 And she looked like she was going to cry. 46:24 And so I said to the pilot: "Excuse me just a minute. " 46:27 And he backed up and let me by. 46:29 And I just went over and gave her a great big hug. 46:31 And I said: "I want you to know you're doing the best job 46:34 you can. This is not your fault. " 46:36 I said: "Please don't take this personal. " 46:38 I said: "You're doing a really good job. 46:41 Don't be upset. " I said: "Jesus loves you; 46:45 He's got a special plan for you today. " 46:47 And she said: "Thank you for that. " 46:49 And she kind of wiped her eyes 'cause she was trying hard 46:51 not to cry. And I stepped back to let the pilot... 46:54 I didn't want him to think I was cutting in line. 46:56 And so the pilot turned and looked at me and goes: 46:58 "That was really nice. " 47:01 And I said: "Well it's not her fault. " 47:03 And the guy behind is still ya ya ya ya ya ya you know. 47:09 And so the pilot sits down by me and he says: 47:11 "You know I'm late too. " He said: "I'm going to have to 47:15 get off this plane" he said... 47:17 he said "cause I'm flying the next flight. " 47:22 And I said: "Well I'm flying too. " 47:23 And I said: "You know my Mom" and I shared with him a little 47:26 bit what I was doing. And I said "It's the first time ever 47:28 my Mom... You know, was going on a ministry trip with me" 47:30 I said "She's waiting at the gate already. She'd already 47:34 texted me like "Where are you? " 47:36 And I'm texting her back saying "I'm stuck on the plane. " 47:40 And I said: "I sure hope they don't leave without me" 47:43 I said "because I really need to make that flight. 47:45 There is no other flight. " 47:47 And I said: "We're going to L.A. " 47:53 And he said: "You're going to L.A. on Delta? " 47:56 I said: "Yeah. " And he goes: "I'm the pilot of that plane! " 48:01 And I said: "You are? " He had already told them 48:05 to bring the steps to let him down, they couldn't wait 48:07 for that jet bridge. He said: "Don't you worry. " 48:09 He's coming down the steps. He turned around 48:11 and looked at me and said: "Don't you worry. 48:12 I'm not leaving without ya. " 48:15 And so I waved to him. I said: "Thank you. " 48:18 And I was like: "Oh God You're so good to me. " 48:21 And so I texted Mom. I said: "I'm stuck on the plane 48:24 but I'll get there. Don't worry. " 48:26 So as soon as that jet bridge was fixed I mean I was 48:29 huffing and puffing and running and running and running. 48:31 And I got to the gate and there was Mom. 48:35 And I gave her a great big hug and she goes: "I was worried 48:37 honey. " She said: "They're calling for us. 48:42 We're supposed to be boarding. " 48:44 And about that time I see the pilot looking out from the 48:51 cockpit... No, not the cockpit. The door you go in to board 48:55 the plane. And he's looking out and he sees me 48:57 and he goes: "OK, now we can leave. " 48:59 And he said: "Get that woman and her mom on this plane. " 49:02 And he came over for a few minutes and I introduced him 49:05 to my Mom and he said to my Mom something about how she'd done 49:10 such a good job raising me or something like that. 49:12 And so I thanked him for waiting for us 49:15 and we got on the plane. And we were there getting 49:17 all settled in and all of a sudden a flight attendant 49:20 came up to me and said: "The captain told all of us 49:24 crew that you were very special friends of his 49:26 and that we're supposed to treat you really good 49:28 and if you need anything to let him know. " 49:32 Next thing you know another crew member came by 49:36 and told us the same thing. 49:37 And I think every one of them came to introduce themselves. 49:41 "We want you to know if there's anything you need... " 49:43 I mean all throughout that flight they were bringing us 49:46 meals from first class. I mean, they were... 49:49 They were treating us so good. 49:50 And I had one of my books called Battered to Blessed 49:53 in my carry-on that I was going to give as a gift 49:57 to our women's ministries director. 49:59 And I pulled that out and God impressed me 50:01 to give that book to the captain. 50:03 And he had told me his name was Tom, and so I signed the 50:05 book to him and I called the flight attendant. 50:08 I said: "Would you make sure the captain gets this book? " 50:12 And she said: "Well yes, I'd be happy to. " 50:14 And so I put a little note in there to him. 50:18 I put my business card in. 50:20 And then we prayed and we were thinking... 50:23 Mom and I even had special prayer before I gave the book 50:25 to him that God would place an extra pouring of His Holy Spirit 50:29 upon this divine appointment that He made with Tom. 50:32 And we didn't get a chance to talk to him again after that. 50:36 But right before I'm getting ready to speak 50:40 at the women's retreat the very first night 50:43 my Mom sees a message. I have her holding my phone. 50:46 I have it on vibrate so it doesn't mess up anywhere. 50:48 And she sees this message come across my phone 50:52 and she can see and she goes: "Honey, Brenda, come look. " 50:54 And here was an e-mail from Tom 50:57 and he told me - poured out his heart. 50:59 Told me how he had been up all night reading my book, 51:02 that he wanted to know more about what I believed in, 51:06 and would I come and speak to his... he has a men's group 51:10 that he meets with. Would I come and speak to them? 51:12 Isn't God good? Amen! 51:15 You see how God leads each step of the way? 51:19 Every step of the way. Now I could not have possibly... 51:21 I could have been sitting there fuming because our plane was 51:24 late. I could have been sitting there - you know - 51:26 being all upset like everybody else. 51:28 But you see, if our plane is late and we're in God's plan 51:31 does it matter? 51:33 That's the really cool thing about being a child of God. 51:36 When you are a Christian and you're following Jesus 51:39 you never have any problems. They're God's problems. 51:43 You know, when we take our burdens to the Lord and leave 51:45 them there we really can trust them to Jesus. 51:48 We don't have to pick them back up and keep worrying 51:50 about it... we can trust it to Jesus. 51:53 I tell you, there are so many wonderful opportunities 51:58 to witness for Jesus 52:01 and God's got a special plan for each one of us. 52:04 I was witnessing on a plane going from Atlanta 52:08 to Shreveport. I always get nervous when I fly 52:11 into Shreveport because I've flown there three times 52:13 and all three times they've lost my luggage. 52:15 In fact, one of the times I had to actually speak 52:18 in my blue jeans. That's not good. 52:20 So now I don't fly that way any more. 52:23 I've always got something in my suitcase that I can speak in. 52:27 But I get nervous going to Shreveport. 52:29 But I was flying from Atlanta to Shreveport 52:34 and our plane was again delayed, delayed. 52:37 I get to sit next to a woman 52:39 in the gate area and we started... God opened the door 52:44 for a way for me to start witnessing to her. 52:46 She was a young woman that was in the service. 52:49 Her name was Noelle. 52:50 And just as we were really getting into God's Word 52:54 they tell us that they're ready to board now. 52:57 We'd had some kind of mechanical problems. 52:58 And so we get on the plane and wouldn't you know... 53:02 our seats are right next to each other. 53:07 And I was like: "Thank you Jesus! 53:09 Oh God, You're so good to me! " 53:11 And so I sat there and we had the whole way 53:14 to finish our Bible study. 53:16 And when we were done I said: "Noelle, 53:19 I'm speaking here tomorrow. " 53:23 I said: "I would love for you to come. " 53:25 And she said: "Really? " 53:27 She said: "Well you know I might just come. " 53:29 And I said: "Well I hope and pray that you do. " 53:32 I said: "In fact, I'm going to ask God not to give you any 53:36 peace or rest until you make a decision to come. " 53:40 She goes: "I kind of think you'd do that. " 53:43 I said: "Oh you know I will! " 53:45 And so I had prayer with her on the plane. 53:49 And all my way even to that hotel I was praying and praying 53:53 and praying that God would not let anything interfere 53:57 with Noelle being at that church the next day. 54:01 And I prayed. I called people. 54:03 I called Prayer Warriors... anybody that I knew would pray 54:06 for me. I called them up and said: "Please pray for Noelle. 54:10 Please pray for Noelle. Please pray for Noelle. " 54:11 You see, when God allows us to be His servants 54:18 we have to trust Him and we are not the Holy Spirit. 54:22 We need to pray and ask God to water those seeds that 54:25 He's allowed us to plant for Him. 54:27 And so as I'm getting... Now it's the church service 54:30 I'm looking all around to see if Noelle's there. 54:32 No, and I described her to the greeters. 54:34 This is what she looks like you know, and... 54:37 I searched through the congregation. 54:40 No, no. Now it's time to go back behind. 54:42 I'm having prayer with the elders before we come out 54:45 on the platform. Now we come out. 54:47 I am just... They have just introduced me 54:50 and I'm getting to the podium to speak 54:53 and in walks Noelle. 54:57 I was able to introduce her to everyone 55:01 right from the podium and told everyone about our divine 55:03 appointment. And I said: "You know, folks... " 55:07 I said: "Let's love her to Jesus. " 55:09 And I wish I had time to tell you all of Noelle's story. 55:13 Sometimes the clock is my enemy 'cause I have so many more 55:16 stories I could be telling ya. 55:18 But God used that experience in such an incredible way. 55:22 And I received... Not long after that Noelle was relocated 55:28 stationed some place different. 55:30 She wanted me to know she'd given her heart to Jesus, 55:33 that she was coming to church. 55:35 She'd asked for our Bible studies, 55:37 and I got her all signed up with Amazing Facts Bible studies. 55:40 In fact, I keep those cards... When I'm traveling 55:43 you know I pack... My carry-on bag on the plane 55:46 is packed for witnessing. 55:48 And so I've got those Bible study cards. 55:50 I've got my Bible. 55:51 I've got my Bible ministry study guide. 55:57 And when someone is interested in Bible studies 56:01 I will hand them that card and I will say: 56:03 "Would you mind putting your name and address on here? " 56:05 I said: "And I'd like for you to learn more 56:09 about what we've been studying. " They said: "Well 56:11 yeah, I'd like that. " 56:12 And I say: "Would you just put your name and address 56:14 on that card for me? " And they go: "Well I can mail it later. " 56:17 Don't give the enemy one minute to get them to change their 56:20 mind. No! I said: "Oh no. " I said: "You fill it out. 56:23 Would you allow me the privilege of putting a stamp on that 56:26 and mailing it for you? " 56:27 You see, I'm not going to give the enemy one second 56:31 to have them change their mind 56:33 and throw that out at the door on their way out. 56:36 You see, God is working in our hearts and our lives today. 56:40 We need to have such a close walk with Jesus, 56:43 we need to be so "prayed up" as my Grandma says, 56:46 that we can hear the Holy Spirit talking to us. 56:50 That we can know when we hear God's voice 56:54 and He's saying "Go sit over here" we sit there. 56:57 We have to be not afraid because we can trust Jesus. 57:00 He's going to give us the words to say. 57:01 There is nothing to be ashamed of or to be afraid of 57:05 when you're working for Jesus. 57:07 You really truly need to just have a heart that's open 57:11 and a relationship with the Lord that is so close. 57:15 You need to be able to fall on your knees 57:18 and pray to God and say: "Lord, 57:20 use me in a special way. " 57:22 "Lord, come into my heart and life. Bend me; 57:26 shape me any way You want me. " |
Revised 2014-12-17