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Hi, everyone! For anyone who feels led to pray, I am in a situation where I have to make some extremely important decisions. As I sift through the options, I'm trying to discern what looks good from what is good. I need to know God's will from the clever counterfeit, and I don't think this is the time to wing it and see what happens. Anyone who wishes to pray, I'd be much obliged.

You got it!!!
Let us know how you get on ok?

 :'( I need some of that too. *sigh* Praying, Whitehorse.

You'll be in my prayers!
God Bless,
LMarsh

Thanks, guys-I really appreciate it and I'll add you all to my prayer list as well. I'll be praying for your decision too, Willow. These decisions can be really hard sometimes. I need an opinion-when (if) and how do you permanently brush the dust off your feet when God has done mixed things in a certain area of evangelism?

I'll be praying Whitehorse and Willowbirch!!!  But what do you mean, brush the dust off your feet?  (sorry, i'm a little slow)

I don't think this is the time to wing it and see what happens.

Hehe--- 8)


and how do you permanently brush the dust off your feet when God has done mixed things in a certain area of evangelism?

Hmmm, could we be a little bit more vague??(hehe-- ;D).


    :-X


Oh, alright.  I'll pray.  

Oklahoma Howdy to Whitehorse,

I will definitely pray for you. Remember that God's Word is never wasted. You may not know the results of the GOOD NEWS you shared, but HE knows if HE sent you to tell it.

If you are talking about Evangelism on the Internet, that is an extremely difficult medium of communication. Some types are easier than others (i.e. non-interactive messages). I know that forums and chat areas are also effective, but they are much more difficult to communicate in. The software now has the smileys and other ways to communicate feelings, but it is still very difficult to understand the real thoughts of those participating in discussions. Regardless, the message of the GOOD NEWS is never wasted, and I'm positive that God will use it.

I don't know the specifics of what you are talking about, but I would make a general observation. If you feel directed to go an do something for HIM, simply go and do your best. I know it may not be that simple, so I will be praying for you.

In Christ,
Tom

Thanks Peachy, Symphony, and BEP! I've been talking to some people who are enemies of God but whom I dearly love. And I'm trying to figure out if it's God's idea or mine for me to be there. Some are receptive, some seem frightened. And the fear makes them lash out in irrational ways. But I care so much about them, it only makes me love them more, even though I don't really understand the fear. I see it, but don't understand it. I just want to make sure this is God's idea-I pray about it a lot but I'm still not sure. There is hostility from some, although they seem willing enough to talk about it...I don't know.

Blessings,
Whitehorse

Oklahoma Howdy to Whitehorse,

I must first apologize about my first message to you about this issue. It looks like I was asleep on the first paragraph, and it didn't make much sense. I've fixed it now.

It sounds like a difficult situation. In the for what it is worth category, if I felt convicted to go I would go and keep going until I was asked to leave. Some of the fear, anger, and emotions you see from them might be the Holy Spirit working with the message you bring. I'm certainly not suggesting that you put yourself in danger or wind up in jail trying to help them. Now I'll have to share a special little smile with you about my 84 year old mother. My mother would tell you to go and let Jesus worry about it. I might add that she practices what she preaches and shares with street people, people doped out of their minds, and folks she's never met before. I might add that she goes alone over my objections and tells me to mind my own business.   :D

I hope this at least put a little smile on your face while you are trying to make this difficult decision. I'll be praying for you.

In Christ,
Tom

Thanks, BEP! Your encouragement is very refreshing-that's great about your Mom!  

 :D

Maybe you're looking at it too closely, WH??   I dunno.   :-\


bep:  It looks like I was asleep on the first paragraph...

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   :-X

Too closely? Heehee! Nope-not this crowd. It doesn't take spectacles to see the way they feel. Some day I'll take you guys on a little tour of where I visit! Bring an apron, and I hope you like eggs and rotten tomatoes, cuz that's what Christians eat there, they second they appear!  ;D

Hmm.  Yikes.  I have a feeling I'm going to be eating alot of those one day soon.

Well, I'm praying for you, Whitehorse, in this situation.  Thank you for sharing it with us.  In Jesus' Name...

Oklahoma Howdy to Whitehorse,

Here's one more little grin for you, but I won't be exaggerating much about my mother. My mother is an extremely strong and fierce Christian woman who very rarely ever gives up on anything. (No Kidding)

We could turn my mother loose on them. After several days or weeks, they would be like Jerry Clowery up in the tree with a mountain lion hollering, "Shoot up here amongst us, one of us has to have some relief."   ;D  If you are wondering, Jerry Clowery is an old country comedian. You may be too young to remember the name. He used to be on the Grand Ole Opry from time to time many years ago.

In Christ,
Tom  

Whitehorse,

Let me give my answer in the form of a question...what does God tell us to do?  Does He tell us to tell others until they don't listen...or simply to tell?  When in doubt, stick with what He says.   :)

Yes, that's a very good point. I guess where I'm having the trouble is, some are listening and those who aren't (or, who really may in fact be listening even though it would seem otherwise, as BEP wisely pointed out) are doing what they can to keep anyone from listening by interjecting a lot of interfereance and noise. They make abrasive, blasphemous statements, but it's so extreme that even those who aren't Christians are rebuking them, and are honing their hearing so they're making some very intelligent conversation.

It's just those few that are problematic. And I should really resent them, I suppose, but I don't. It only makes me care even more. But the tomatoes and eggs do get old after a while.

I guess where I'm having the problem is, I just want to be sure it's God moving me in this direction. Because those few are abrasive.

Yes, I'm sorta in similar trajectory, perhaps, thoughts varying from one moment to the next, almost like a ping pong ball.

It's the varying thoughts part I dislike.

I guess you have to have some "settled" time to make sense of all of it.

That seems to be what Jesus did.  Seems like there in Mark he's always going up in some quiet place to pray.  And He was God.

If God needs to settle His thoughts....   ???

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       :-\

Psalm 46:10, God speaking: "Be still and know that I am God..."

Whitehorse, I will pray for you.  Tom' mom is right and so are you.  We are to witness to others, regardless of who they are.  I have the same problem in day to day life.  Some people are so cold but still yet the seed is planted though the results may not be apparent for a long time.  Keep your faith and trust God with what you say.  Let Him control your tongue.  He will, He does it for me all the time,  Believe me,  I have needed His help with breathing let alone speaking.

Chanelle

Thank you, Chanelle!

Thanks, guys! Sometimes I forget to press the notification button, so if it ever seems like I forgot to acknowldge your post, it isn't because I just didn't-it's because I didn't see it. :-[ I'm really sorry, and thank you so much for your kind responses.
*hug*

 

How's it goin' in this, Whitehorse?

Well, every time I give up on them, something pulls me back. Is it God? Is it a counterfeit? Not sure, but there's no denying I feel a tremendous power in my prayers for them although I haven't seen the fruit of it yet. But something tells me I will.

I've done quite a bit of prayer about it, and I think God is showing me another project it seems He wants me to work on,  a way of sharing God's love with them that will be better and more effective. Which will require my absence from them, probably for a long, long time. Forever?

Which is very hard because I care about them more than they could possibly imagine. They still have a hard time believing any Christian would pray for them or care for them. But in the long run, I think what I'm going to do now is best.

 

Which will require my absence from them, probably for a long, long time. Forever?



"Absence makes the heart grow fonder"?   ???

Maybe so.  :)

But whether or not absence does anything, guess the best thing is to just be trusting in Him, and praying as you are doing, Whitehorse.

   :)

It won't be easy, I can tell you that. But I just realized: supposing they do come to the Lord? What kind of support is there just for them? It breaks my heart to see how skeptical they can be that anyone would even pray for them. Why don't they feel safe when people do kindness for them, expecting nothing in return? That is a complete heartbreak. And then I see Broken's post about a church who actually left a guy to freeze to his death. I must ask this question:

Did that man die a Christian?

So now I want to offer support that the people I've been sharing with can come to on their own. That way I'm not casting pearls. For some reason I can't let this thing, five years running as of last month, just go away. After reading Broken's post, as long as God wills it, I can't.

I feel a tremendous power in my prayers for them although I haven't seen the fruit of it yet.


    :)

Then something is happening. You may never see it for yourself, but God is using you in a wonderful way. Thanks for the encouragement!

Thanks, Willow!

    ???

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 ;D

    :-\

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How are you doing, Symphony?

You talkn' to me?

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    ???