Acts 1:8 (NIV)
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
CONSIDER THIS
Today’s Holy Spirit Story comes from Keith Wasserman, another longtime friend. Keith founded and leads a phenomenal mission called Good Works, Inc. in Athens, Ohio. “Good Works exists to connect people from all walks of life with people in poverty so that the kingdom of God can be experienced.” One of the finest followers of Jesus I know, Keith has been at this for more than forty years. Read his powerful story here. I was thrilled to receive this story from Keith, which you will read in his own words below; and if you listen—in his own voice.
My wife, Darlene, and I had never discussed adoption. We had been married almost nine years when, on April 15th, 1990, the phone rang while we were praying. The woman asked me “Are you Keith Wasserman?” I answered, yes. She said the following words to me that I will never forget:
“God spoke to me and told me to call you and ask you if you want to adopt a baby.”
I said, “Who are you?” She told me her name. I had never heard her name before.
She explained how she was helping a woman find a home for her unborn child and that the mother was due in July. She was seeking a family to adopt this baby and God gave her our name. Being a bit stunned I said: “Ah . . . can I get back to you? I think we need to pray about this.”
Two days later she called back, and she asked us again. We answered, “We are open to continuing the conversation.”
We didn’t really tell very many people, but we did seek the counsel of trusted friends. We were both excited and scared. We mentioned the possibility to our parents, and I did talk with my friend who was an attorney. Over the next two weeks, we prayed and tried to discern how God was working as we sought wisdom.
There is a lot more to the story, but here is the short version: On the morning of May 2, 1990 (about fifteen days later), she called at 6:00 a.m. and said, “You have a baby, and you can pick him up tomorrow morning.” And we did. We took the one-hour drive to the hospital in another city and brought with us the piece of paper our attorney had prepared for us. We handed them this piece of paper (a court order for temporary placement), and they handed us a baby who was one day old.
That was more than thirty-three years ago. Sometimes the unexpected sovereign intervention of God’s goodness is so powerful, so amazing, and so significant that it changes your life forever.
“I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.” Psalm 27:13–14
THE PRAYER
Father, thank you for this powerful story of how the Holy Spirit moves heaven and earth to create family. Thank you for this family’s openness to opportunity and for their obedience to take the risk of faith. The earthly and eternal significance of this is breathtaking. Holy Spirit, would you encourage our faith and inspire our obedience to be ready for the opportunities you bring our way? Praying in Jesus’s name, amen.
THE QUESTION
Do you believe God speaks to people as is told in this story? Does God speak to you? Would you like to hear from God or to learn to hear God’s voice?
THE HYMN
Today we will sing our Saturday song: “Sanctuary.” We will sing it through twice.
For the Awakening,
J. D. Walt
Sower-in-Chief
seedbed.com
P.S. Holy Spirit Stories Welcome
I would love it if you would send a story of faith from your life we might use on a Saturday in the future. We will be glad to attach your name or a pseudonym or anonymity—it’s up to you. It can be a story of coming to faith, a story of transformation, a story of healing, deliverance, suffering and sufficient grace, family reconciliation, prodigal returns, answered prayer, and so forth. A word count of 500–800 words works well. We can’t guarantee publication, but we assure you of our prayerful discernment. You can reply to this email with your story and it will come to me.
3 Responses
Although I’ve never heard God speaking directly to me in a “still quite voice “, I do believe that He still does. I also believe that He still speaks through dreams and visions, although I think for me at least, it’s been through open doors and confirming circumstances. Our part in these processes is to be open and prepared to respond in obedience.
Sometimes all we need is someone to encourage us to let Jesus out of the bag. People like to keep Jesus in 4 bags: 1) the history bag, 2) the Heaven bag, 3) the church bag, and 4) the privacy bag.
Let Jesus out of the history bag. Continually experience His presence in the present.
Let Jesus out of the take-me-to-Heaven bag. Walk and talk with the living and present Jesus every day.
Let Jesus out of the church bag. Open your heart to Him and interact with Him everywhere you go.
Let Jesus out of the privacy bag. Live in His Light. What He speaks to your heart “shout it from the housetops.” Be His witness and demonstrate His presence all the time.
Christians who say God isn’t speaking to individuals today are displaying their own unbelief for all to see. They have Jesus in a bag. Open the bag and dare to believe God.
A couple of weeks ago I was in a meeting where a man who has struggled with addiction heard someone let Jesus out of the bag by giving a testimony about how God speaks directly to people. Yesterday, that man told me that ever since then he has been hearing God speak in his heart. He said he has had similar experiences before, but he thought it was just his own thoughts, but now he knows that it is really God. His face was aglow as he testified about the wonderful things Jesus is saying and doing in his life.
Nice analysis about the bags, Steve.