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Editorials
for Winter 2005

EVERYDAY MEETINGS

by Laura Faidley

Winter 2005 issue

Standing to join the others in singing praises to God, I glanced behind me and noticed a girl I’d never seen before. At that moment, Jesus spoke to my heart: Go and talk to her after church.

Me, Lord? But I don’t even know her. And I’m not the type to just go up to a stranger like that. But the Lord’s quiet prompting did not leave. After worship, I rushed to the back of the sanctuary, hoping I would not be too late. The young lady and her family were just leaving when I hurried up and tentatively introduced myself. “Hi, my name is Laura Faidley. I don’t think I’ve met you before—are you visiting?”

Turning to me with a cheerful smile, the girl replied, “Yes, we’re visiting from California . My name is Sara.” Graciously extending her hand, she continued, “It’s nice to meet you.” What a surprise—they were from the other side of the country! I discovered that the family had come to Lynchburg to compete in a debate/oration competition. After paging through the phonebook for a like-minded church to attend while in town, they’d ended up at ours.

We struck up a conversation and soon found we had much in common. “Do you know about__?” “Have you read__?” “What do you think about__?” Twenty minutes later, the rest of my family migrated over, and I introduced them. But all too soon, it was time to leave. So, after exchanging addresses and goodbyes, we went our separate ways, with uplifted, encouraged hearts.

Wow, Lord! If I had failed to obey Your prompting in my heart, I would have missed meeting this wonderful sister in Christ! They came all the way from California …and You sent me to encourage them and to be encouraged.

The Chicago airport seemed quiet and mostly deserted as we sat down to eat a midnight supper. Before devouring our chicken sandwiches, Anne and I bowed our heads to pray. When we began to eat, the girl across the table asked, “Are you like Catholic or something?”

“Well, we’re Christian,” we replied in unison.

“Oh, yeah? I just asked because I used to be Catholic. It was just, you know, so complicated—I never could get that part about the seventh sin. What was that all about, anyway?”

Tell her about Me. It’s not about rules. It’s all about Me.

The girl chattered on—telling us about her parents’ divorce…how horrible her life was…that she couldn’t wait to get out of the airport so that she could smoke, etc. She was so insecure—searching for something to satisfy, something to fill her aching heart.

You see, we were on the same flight. Due to weather and fuel shortage, by the time our plane touched down in Chicago , our connecting flights had left. Anne and I were on our way to Portland …and we were stuck in the Chicago airport for the night…with this girl. All around us, passengers were distraught—crying hysterically, yelling at the customer service clerks. But I was filled with peace.

Now, here we were together, and she was hurting…she was desperate. I could see it in her eyes. But I did not speak—did not share God’s peace with her. Why? For fear of not having the right words? She needed Jesus and I had the answers, or at least I was supposed to. I don’t remember exactly what I said, but it wasn’t what I should have said. The next morning, she was gone—gone to her life, and we to ours. It breaks my heart, even now, to write this. I missed my chance! I failed my Savior! I can only pray for her—that God will bring someone else across her path, someone more mature than I …who will obey His voice without question—fearing God, not man.

With the constant crash of waves in our ears, we strolled leisurely along the beach, savoring the  sunset’s dazzling colors and gathering shells. “Oh…look at this one! It’s purple,” Hannah called out. “There’s a whole bunch over here!” Nate yelled up ahead. Our buckets grew heavier as we picked up one shell after another. All too soon, dusk came and hundreds of pale sand crabs (hazardous to bare feetA) emerged from their sandy dwellings. As we headed back to the beach house, a lady approached us and asked, “Do you homeschool?”

“Yes, we do.” A conversation ensued and soon we discovered that the family homeschooled, lived not more than an hour and half from us, and knew a dear friend of ours. They just “happened” to be visiting the North Carolina coast the same week as us, and our beach houses were only blocks apart! The next morning dawned bright and clear, but a strong wind had whipped up the ocean, making it unsafe to swim. Normally, this would have dampened my spirits, but I enjoyed visiting with Christine, who was my age, and her brother and sisters. I discovered that she was an avid reader and writer, and loved animals and the outdoors.

Later, when the surf grew calmer, our families swam together while our mothers talked. The following day they left, but not until Christine and I exchanged addresses and promised to keep in touch. Lord, you do have a sense of humor! I chuckled to myself as I drifted off to sleep that night. Here we live a little over an hour from these people, we have a mutual friend, and You brought us to the beach to meet each other! Your ways are wonderful. We didn’t know each other, but we both knew You.

Struggling against the bone-chilling wind to open the hood of her car, we attached the tangled jumper cables to her dead battery. “If anything is going to happen, it will happen. I don’t think I can take anything else. Don’t know how I’d ever make it without this Bible study.”

A young mother with three kids under three, she’d been attending a small Bible study at our local crisis pregnancy center. Our paths crossed when Anne and I volunteered to baby-sit the children while the mothers prayed and sang and studied God’s word.

She should’ve been on her way home by now. But the car battery was dead. To make matters worse, one of her little girls had gotten sick and was throwing up. The baby was screaming in the back seat of the car. What am I supposed to say?

Share Me.

That seemed so trite in her circumstances. But what could I say? We determined the baby was hungry, and soon comforted her with a bottle of warm milk. One lady cleaned up the sick little girl and changed her clothes. Someone else jump-started the car. After exchanging some words and saying a prayer, we sent her on her way. As this courageous young woman hopped in the car—encouraged and restored—I noticed the song playing on the radio: “Your love is amazing, steady and unchanging, Your love is a mountain firm beneath my feet…Your love carries me. Hallelujah!”1 

Yes! Jesus’ love. That’s what it’s all about.

We sat together on our hard bedroom floor in front of an old tape recorder—her, Hannah, and I. Her name was Kristina…the little girl from New York City who spent several weeks with us last summer. On this last night of her visit, we were making a tape for her to take home, talking about her visit and what she had learned. Kristina loved reading Bible stories…it was all so new to her. When she came, she knew nothing about Jesus.

That summer evening, we read her favorite Bible book…about Jesus and salvation…one last time. I found myself having to constantly correct her incorrect doctrine while trying not to laugh (like when she said that Jesus’ disciples got mad at the Roman soldiers, so they nailed them on the crosses on either side of JesusA). But then, as we discussed heaven, Kristina said seriously, “But I can’t go up there. I’ve done too many bad things. I can’t be good enough. I’m going to down there.” She pointed to the word “hell” surrounded by flames of fire.

Oh, Lord. Give me the words to explain this in simple terms. Help me show her Your heart.

I told her that all of us deserved to go “down there.” We all do bad things…the Bible calls it sin. But God loved us so very much that He sent His only Son, Jesus, to take our punishment for all the “bad things” we had done. And that Jesus  wanted to come into her heart and make her pure and clean. Of course, Kristina had many questions, which I answered as simply as I could. We concluded the tape by singing “Jesus Loves Me,” a newfound favorite song of hers. Later, as I packed Kristina’s bags, I contemplated the evening.

You’ve done your part, Jesus told me. Now you must trust Me to work in Kristina’s heart. I was filled with a sense of joy. I had obeyed, and Jesus was in charge of the results.

“Is that the last box?” I asked Anne as we met in the parking lot.

“Yes.”

“Great! I’ll close the car and be right in to help set things up.”

Anne, Hannah, and I had just arrived at a mother/daughter conference where we would be speaking and exhibiting HopeChest. Several girls graciously offered to help us set up our table. As I unloaded magazines and books and arranged them on the table, I overheard two young ladies discussing where they were going to spend the night. God’s spirit prompted me: You have an extra bed in your hotel room. Invite them to spend the night with you.

But Lord, I don’t even know these girls.

He responded, I do.

By now, the duo was heading down the hall. I followed them to the church kitchen, where they discussed the possibilities with a lady there. I stepped up and spoke, “We have an extra bed…would you like to…?” After checking with their parents over the phone, they gratefully accepted the invitation (their alternative was to camp out at the churchA).

Before the conference began, we talked while eating supper. Katrina and Katelyn related their story: a week ago, the conference coordinator called their home in Texas , asking if they would be willing to come lead singing, speak, and help wherever needed. After much prayer, a whirlwind week, and many miracles…here they were in Richmond , Virginia .

And what a wonderful weekend we had! Originally, I thought we would bless Katrina and Katelyn by sharing our hotel room. But the Lord more than repaid us. The fellowship we enjoyed was very sweet. We discovered shared burdens for ministry. We discussed the adventures of life after graduation. We talked about our families. A special time of prayer wrapped up our late night discussion. I thank the Lord for bringing these young ladies into my life. What an inspiration they were to me. Twenty-four hours later, we hugged and said goodbye to dear friends…not strangers.

This past year, the Lord taught me that nothing happens by chance or fate. No meeting is a coincidence! Each is orchestrated by our Heavenly Father who loves to surprise and delight His children. All are opportunities to share His love. My path has crossed so many people I would never have dreamed of meeting. But Jesus brought us together for a reason. He had some word of encouragement He wanted me to share with them. And just as often, they were used by God to teach me and build up my faith.

Thinking this over in my journal, I wrote, “Nothing happens by chance. When I meet someone new, I need to stop judging by first appearances and realize that God orchestrated our paths to cross. I must be responsive to His Spirit in me, and listen for His voice, directing me what to say and do—sometimes spur of the moment. Every day God brings people across my path—through phone conversations, e-mails, or in person. I need to love them with Christ’s love and not cast them aside as unimportant. I need to love whomever God brings into my life and not just my friends.”

Everyday meetings. An awesome God. When He speaks, I must learn to obey without question. “It’s hard to explain in words,” I journaled recently, “but sometimes I just have a strong, inner urge to go and speak to someone, or to do something that doesn’t make sense to me.” When I have obeyed the Holy Spirit’s prompting, I’ve found great joy and fellowship. But I have often failed in this. Too many times, I have ignored God’s voice for fear of what people will think of me, or because it’s just not convenient, or it’s too last minute. That person passes out of my life and I am filled with a sense of regret: “What if I had…?”

Over the years, people have complimented me on my joyful smile and said how much it encouraged their hearts. But I’m learning that sometimes just a smile isn’t enough. I often struggle with fear and don’t have the right words. “…do not be frightened,” writes Peter. “But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.”2 The key to being prepared? In your hearts, set apart Christ as Lord. If Christ is Lord of my life—Lord of my every moment—will He not also be Lord of my conversation? If I surrender and let Him guide my steps, will He not also guide my words?

I must study God’s Word fervently and seek Jesus with all my heart. Living in His love, in constant communication with Him, He gives the right words to say and grants the courage to speak them. Abide in Jesus. Be open. Seek His face. Listen for His Voice. And when you hear it…act!

So often, we judge by first appearance, but God looks at the heart. Each day He brings people across our path to encourage and inspire us, and for us to encourage and inspire. How do we respond? Do we toss them aside as unimportant? Each person is a treasure, made in God’s image. Who are we to decide which individuals are worthy of our time, our speaking to them?

Are we missing God-given appointments because we have become so focused on what we are doing? Dee Brestin writes, “Isn’t that what happened to the priest and the Levite in the story of the Good Samaritan? They stepped right over the broken and bleeding man, thinking they were serving God. Jesus never saw people as interruptions. His only focus was His Father’s will. He saw interruptions as friends.”3 It breaks my heart to think of the people I have tossed aside as inconsequential—that I didn’t share Christ’s truth and love with. I pray for grace and strength to respond differently in the future.

The question really comes down to “Who am I living for? Who am I trying to please—God or man?” If you please God, it doesn’t matter who you displease. If you displease God, it doesn’t matter who you please. Give up your own agenda. Your own way. Your own life. Accept God’s will for you today…this moment…and you will find joy. “When we choose to take the hand of Jesus, even though we may not know where He’s leading, He has a certain destination in mind, and it will be a delightful surprise to our souls.”4

“I am God, and there is no other; I am God and there is none like Me. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say: My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please. From the east I summon a bird of prey; from a far-off land, a man to fulfill My purpose.”5 Will you be that man—that woman—through whom God fulfills His purposes? Don’t be so set in your ways, saying that you would never do “such and such” or go to “that place!” Let Him guide every day…every moment. Brokenness is what God desires—“whenever, wherever, however you want to use me Lord, I am yours.”

God does not show us His plan for our whole lives all at once. If He did, where would there be room for faith and trust? As we heed what He is teaching us, Jesus reveals His will one step at a time. We do not know what the future holds—you may not know what this year, or this week, or even this day may hold—but we know the One who holds the future. And He is Jesus Christ, the King of the Universe. He is in control and is working all things for the good of those who love Him.

I’ll never forget a picture I saw on the wall at a home I visited—simple, but powerful. A little girl, her face full of joy and delight, was swinging high on a swing. Her eyes sparkled and she was laughing. But follow the ropes that support the swing up…up…up. They are not fastened to the branch of a tree, but are firmly grasped in a strong hand…the Hand of Jesus. What a beautiful picture! Let us place ourselves in His Hands. We have no reason to fear, for the Author of our lives knows every fiber of our beings. And He is good. Rest in His love.

Notes: 1Hallelujah! (Your Love is Amazing) by Brenton Brown and Brian Doerksen. 21 Pet 3:14-16. 3-4Falling in Love with Jesus by Dee Brestin & Kathy Troccoli. 5Is. 46:9-11. All teferences niv.