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The Amazing Power of One

by Don Pedal  
5/28/2010 / Christian Living

I didn't notice him at first until I heard his comments as I walked by. I realized the comments were about me and not complementary at all. I turned and looked at him and was surprised when he smiled and invited me to sit down. He seemed to be a flamboyant character, gold necklace, bracelet, rings and all. His clothes and personality told me he was no shy introvert. After a few more comments about my age and abilities the conversation became more serious.
As we talked, I realized I was talking to a deeply troubled man. He told me of the many problems in his life. He felt that some things he had done could never be forgiven. I explained to him that we have all sinned and offended God and that God loves us and desires to forgive us and have a personal relationship with us. I explained to him that God loves us right where we are, sins and all. We don't have to try to be good to come to Him but could come just as we are. I felt the presence of the Holy Spirit guiding me in this conversation. I knew and could feel this man's inner pain and knew he didn't need to hear that he was a sinner and going to hell. He already knew that. As I explained to him God's love and forgiveness, he suddenly looked at me and said, "Nobody ever told me that".
That evening, during my quiet time with the Lord, I thought about that conversation. He showed me so clearly the amazing power of one. Here was a man of a different race and culture who I never met before, sharing with me his inner pain and despair. God showed me His awesome power that evening and I would like to share with you what I learned. Never underestimate what one man walking with the Lord can do.
Why don't they do something?
How many times have we seen a need or problem and thought, "Why don't they do something about that"? How many times has someone told us about their pain or despair and we expressed our sympathy, promised to pray for them, and then went on our way?
"Why don't they do something about it"? Who are we thinking of when we say that? Is there a chance that sometimes God is calling us to be "they"?
We tend to think in terms of pastors, elders, deacons and other leaders. After all, that's what they are there for, right? We think in terms of meetings, conferences, seminars etc. So often these result in pleasant times, lots of dialog, but soon fade from our attention as new problems arise.
As I watched this phenomenon time and again, I began to think of the early church as told in the Book of Acts. Here was a church that turned the world upside down. How did that happen? What did they have that we don't? Was this a special blessing of the Holy Spirit to get the church going? What was so special? There must be something or we would see the same power in the church today, right?
Go forth!
As I pondered these questions, I thought of Christ's commandment to " Go forth and make disciples of all nations". To me, "go forth" means to leave the safety and comfort of the church group and go into the world outside, a world that is hurting, in pain and filled with despair.
We would have recruited people rented a hall or stadium, turned on the publicity etc. Maybe called a meeting of all the leaders of the synagogue, but what did Jesus do, knowing that He only had three years to finish His ministry? He and His few followers went from village to village. He had time to minister to the woman at the well, to the blind and lame. He dined with sinners in their homes. He was always there for the individual who was needy. He constantly did His Father's work according to the Father's will.
The latent power of one
I began to realize the latent power of one individual. The power of God flowing through one willing person can change ones world. You say, that sounds great but if that is true, why don't I see that going on around me? That is a profound question. Can it be that we don't think of ourselves as "servants of the Most High"? Do we think as conformists in terms of institutions, committees, groups etc? That's the safest. If something goes wrong, nobody is to blame. Perhaps we don't have a college education as "they" do. As I recall Paul was the only highly educated man in the bunch except for Luke a doctor. The rest were fishermen, tax collectors etc. Maybe we don't do well as public speakers (Moses and Paul had a problem here). God's power is greatest when He uses weak vessels so there is no question of the source of the power.
So far, everything I have said here is a self imposed limitation of the mind. We need to think of ourselves as servants of the Lord. We must realize that we have no power in ourselves, only that given to us by Him. We must begin to understand that He desires to use every one of us as channels of His love, healing and forgiveness to the hurting world around us.
We meet people every day, that will never grace a church pew, who may be dying inside. They could be someone the Lord wants to love, heal and bless. At that moment you are the person in that unique position to channel God's grace to them. You are the person standing in the gap saying, "Here I am, send me" (Isaiah 6:8). You are "they".
If we could come to see ourselves as ministers of the Lord and not as members of an institution or group, the work of the Lord would spread like a wild fire through our community and land.
What is this "Power of One"?
This brings us to the amazing power of one. What is this awesome power that motivates a person to step out and accomplish things, which, to him were beyond his abilities? Where does it come from? Is it available to everyone?
Scripture is filled with examples of this power.
Consider Noah. You can imagine the ridicule he experienced as he worked year after year building this huge ark in a land that had never known rain.
Abraham, an old man of wealth, packed up his family and left security for an unknown land and future that the Lord was yet to show him.
Nehemiah, the king's cupbearer, a prominent man in the king's court, risked the king's displeasure and left the court to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem.
Moses, a simple man, went before the king of Egypt and thru God's power, led the Israelites to freedom.
As we read the stories of these outstanding servants of God, one character trait stands out. Each one saw himself as a servant of the Lord. As the Holy Spirit inspired them, each one stepped out, in faith, to pursue the vision God had given him.
To sum it up, what is the power of one?
The power of one is freely asking God to make you a channel of His love, grace, healing and forgiveness to the hurting world around you, as He enables you daily.
How can I have this power?
You may ask, "How can I release this power within me? The answer is, you can't. As Jesus said,
"Without me you can do nothing". (John 15:5). The Lord Himself will empower you through His Holy Spirit, daily. He does not call us to any good work without enabling us to be successful.
As we draw closer to Him daily, He will begin to release His power through us and bring us into situations in which He wants to heal, forgive and bless others. Our view of others will change as He allows us to see them through His eyes as the wounded battered people, filled with pain, suffering and despair that they are. Only then can His healing power flow through us to accomplish His purposes.

This privilege of "becoming a channel" may not happen immediately. Sometimes the Lord must prepare us first. We may have flaws and deficiencies to be dealt with in our personal life. This is the work of the Holy Spirit.
All this sounds so wonderful why don't I see more of this power of one ministry around me? Actually there is a great deal of this ministry going on; by its nature it isn't always obvious.
To grow spiritually we need to study the Word daily and need to discipline ourselves to have a "quiet time" each day with the Lord. First and foremost He desires a personal relationship with us. How can He walk with us, everyday, to serve Him if we don't give Him our private time together? How can the General (the Lord) direct our daily battles and activities if He rarely hears from us? (His soldiers).
Some reasons people don't realize the power in their lives
a) We don't think of ourselves as ministers and channels of God's grace, daily, to others. We think in terms of others, institutions, committees, groups etc. We think, "after all, that's why we pay the pastor, right"! In other words, them.
b) We don't have a close personal, daily, relationship with Jesus.
c) We cannot bring ourselves to permit the Lord to use us as a channel of His grace in our daily lives. One of the hardest things to do is to submit our will to His, daily.
d) We are infected with one of the common spiritual diseases of our time, "busyness". We can't seem to get to it. Sometimes we are so busy doing "God's work" according to our agenda that we can't hear His voice.
Allowing God to use us as a channel is not easy to do. Sometimes it's inconvenient, can be disruptive to our schedule or plans, can take time that we don't feel we have etc.
The Lord offers us a wonderful ministry tailored just for us. He provides the power, ability, sensitivity, compassion, energy and enthusiasm as well as His personal presence daily as we walk the path He has laid out for us. How can we possibly fail. In Him all things are possible.
The choice is ours.
"Lone ranger" Christians
It would be easy to think of the previous discussion as a pathway to "Lone Ranger" Christianity and service to the Lord. I would caution you that there is no intent here to advocate such an idea. Scripture makes it very clear that we are all part of the family of God.
The church family, breaking bread, worshiping together, fellowshipping, supporting and encouraging each other is very much the will of God. The cord of many strands is so much stronger. The fire of single embers soon goes out.
Let's praise the holy name of Jesus and look forward to serving him only, in these perilous times.

As a senior citizen, I am dedicated to serving the Lord through sharing my experiences and insights with other believers. My primary focus is upon being an disciple of Jesus and, in being one, I can help others to find their spiritual way also.
This article is original and not copywrited

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