Getting it Wrong Sometimes Can Be a GREAT Witness!

​While I was flying home from my manager’s meeting this past week I sat next to a couple who were being a bit argumentative with each other. I started to pray for them and I felt like God showed me that there was some kind of family decision they were dealing with that could be a root cause of their angst. I got nervous to share anything with them because it looked like they were in the middle of a disagreement and would not care for some super spiritual seatmate sharing some Godly tidbit to make things even worse. Then I had a flash in my mind that maybe I had it wrong and what God was showing me was just me being emotional and fishing for something to justify their attitudes. When I got sick with an eye condition a few years ago, God showed me that people who are aggressive and angry in life all have a root cause that is motivating them to act in a certain way. It is not to justify people being rude or mean, but that it can give context for dealing with obstinate people in life.
 
After I had this mental flash, I thought about what keeps people from intersecting in people’s lives when they feel like God is showing them something. We don’t want to be embarrassed or for people to think we are some radical Jesus weirdoes getting in their business. Then I felt like I learned a life lesson. When I say life lesson, I am saying something that is not just for that moment but something I will carry with me for the rest of my life and can be a help to others. God showed me that even if we get it wrong, but still take opportunity to say something to people, it could be a witness in how we react when we are shut down. In our world, we have lost the art of gracefulness. What I mean is that when we think something is about us or how people perceive us, and we are not received, we get offended because we put ourselves out there for what we thought was for someone’s good and not appreciated. When we give a word and someone receives it, we feel great and like God used us for a greater purpose. The challenge in that is getting a big head and thinking we are the prophetic voice of the Lord for people and become arrogant. That is not what giving a word for someone should consist of. Think of it this way; giving a word to someone is simply being a conduit to get God’s heart to someone who may be looking away from God. When we miss it and maybe speak to someone out of emotion and get it wrong, how we react in that moment can be as much of a testimony as a well-received word. The gracefulness we use in our words, so that people see it’s not about us but that we cared enough to reach out and say something, can be very powerful for people.
 
So what happened on the airplane with that couple? I asked God to give me an intersection and starting a conversation with them. I saw them start to warm up to each other a little and decided to begin a benign conversation with them. After we had been talking for a while I told them I had been praying and that I felt like they were dealing with a family issue. They turned and looked at each other wide eyed and said that was right on. They were actually flying to Colorado to see their granddaughter who had essentially been kept from them by a daughter in law who does not like them and puts severe restrictions on them. They were heartbroken by the situation and were flying from Florida and only allowed to stay one day with their kids and then commanded to fly home. I was also able to talk to the husband about my eye journey and he shared about a medical condition for his eyes as well. It was an amazing interaction and it felt good to be used by God to encourage this couple in their journey.
 
I want to encourage you today to be a follower of Christ that has a heart to pray for others. Learning to listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit is important in the life of a believer because there will be times that he share’s things just for you but also for other people. Also realizing that as a child learns how to walk you may get it wrong sometimes. And even if you miss it, God can still get the glory because the key is that you are obedient and leave the outcome to God. You may say that your personality doesn’t lend itself to those types of interactions with people, but there are people just like you who also occasionally need that intersection in life to let them know that they are on God’s mind. God knows how he created you and doesn’t want you to come to harm but staying inside of what you have always known or inside the walls of your Christianity can be a very boring place to be. We need to always be in a place to stay alert to the Spirit’s promptings and willing to go and do what he asks. You can do it and God will be with you as you learn to listen to Him in a new way today!