What is Eclipsing You?
Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. (Mat 5:14)
April 8, 2024
I met this young man of East African origin at a shelter in the downtown area. I was curious to know what brought him there, and so I asked him, and that morphed into a conversation. He was newly homeless, only ten days. He had a drinking problem, which led to him and his wife fighting with each other and him leaving their home. Unable to find space in any of the shelters, he ended up on the streets. Not accustomed to street life, he freely admitted that it was too hard. I sat with him and began to share what the Lord Jesus did for all of humanity, and I asked him if he was willing to surrender his life to the Lord and to start his life anew. He was willing! He knew that drinking was the underlying issue that was destroying his life and that the devil had him hooked on to alcohol. Several times, he had tried to quit drinking but was not able to do it because it had such a destructive grip on him. I explained to him that only Jesus Christ could set him free and make him new, and he believed my words. He wanted to repent and turn to Jesus for good.
At the very moment he was doing that, another man—let me call him Mr. G—was walking right past us, and I called him to us. When he came near, I asked him, “Mr. G, you used to have a drinking problem, didn’t you?” He said, “Yes, but not anymore.” It was true, and here is the back story.
In early October 2023, one morning I was praying for another man outside the same shelter when he suddenly began to manifest a demon. (That’s another story for another day.) Yes, there was a fight, but a short one, for the Lord Jesus Christ set him free and filled him with His spirit, all in a span of ten or fifteen minutes. Unbeknownst to me, someone was watching what was going on from a distance, and as soon as I had finished with this gentleman, he walked over to me and asked me if I could pray for him. I was delighted, for it was not usual that someone would approach me for prayer in a homeless shelter environment. It was Mr. G. A man in his seventies and a regular guest there at that shelter for a long time. I had never approached him for prayer until then, nor had he come to me. That day he admitted that he had a drinking problem and wanted prayer to be free from it. And so I prayed for him, and the Lord took away the alcohol addiction and set him free. Praise the Lord.
Now, out of the blue, I had called him as he was walking past us, as the Lord had prompted me. I said to him, “Mr. G, will you please pray for this young man; he has a drinking problem and is homeless now because of it.” I could see that he was a little taken aback by my request, but when I encouraged him he acquiesced. So, we both stood up and joined him in a circle, and Mr. G prayed for the young man in a simple, short prayer, asking the Lord to set him free from his alcohol addiction, to save him, and to restore him. While he was praying, the young man had his head down, his cap shading his face. But as soon as we had said amen, he lifted it up, and we both could see that he was in tears. The Holy Spirit had done His work and had removed the darkness that had eclipsed his life until then. As Mr. G walked away, kind of dazed from what had happened, I continued to talk with the young man.
A little later, as I was chatting with someone else, Mr. G approached us and asked if he could speak to me for a moment. So, I turned aside to him, and he said, “I never thought that I could do that.” He never thought that he could pray for someone, nor had he done so. He just didn’t know how to pray for someone who was in serious trouble like that, and more importantly, he did not imagine that the Lord would honor it. Immediately, the Lord spoke in my heart a word for him, and I gave it to him. I said, “Mr. G, this is your calling. This is what the Lord wants you to do for the rest of your life.” He walked away visibly emotional, for the same way the Holy Spirit had touched the other man, He touched Mr. G again and wrote something fresh on the tablet of his heart, and marked him right then and there.
“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.” (Eph 2:10).
It’s never too late, my friends, to step into the purposes for which God has birthed you again by His Spirit. Mr. G wasn’t expecting God to crash into his life the way He did. But He did, and He changed him for ever, bringing him from under the basket and placing him on a lamp stand to shine brightly for others. (Mat 5:15-16) Don’t let your age, education, circumstances, or anything else hold you back and prevent you from fulfilling His will for your life. Let us dismantle the religious walls and fences that we have erected for ourselves, which keep us from entering into His purposes for our lives. Let us get over all fear, hesitation, and doubts and boldly take a step to walk with the Lord to see His glory manifest. It is good to talk and discuss religious things, to attend religious meetings, and to watch things on YouTube, but He is looking for those who will get past all of that and live it. He wants to live in us and to live out through us. He wants us to walk in union with Him and begin to do the good works that he has prepared in advance for us to do. He is waiting patiently and lovingly. How will you respond?
It is a joy to share with you what the Lord is doing in and through our lives. Thank you for praying for us.
Please share ‘Resurrection Life’ with your friends and family and bring them along in our journey with the Lord. All glory to the One who rose from the dead, never to die again – our Lord Jesus Christ.
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Great story! Inspiring!