“God had told her that on the boat would be an American missionary family consisting of two adults and seven children, and that she was to give them a home.” ~ Liardon, Roberts (2003-05-15). God’s Generals: Why They Succeeded and Why Some Failed
Upon reading this line in a book of biographies, the Lord stopped me and said there was something to learn here. John Lake, a great healing and apostolic minister in the early 1900s, had been led to Africa by the Lord. He had left a very good job to pursue the ministry, and then he, his wife and seven children, had been directed by God to sell everything and go to Africa. So he did exactly that. Without a missions group to send them, and without a local contact to receive them, they followed the Lord to Johannesburg.
When they arrived, they had nothing and knew no one, but the Lord had gone in front of them and stirred up a faithful lady, telling her to go to the docks and look for an American missionary family of 2 adults and 7 children, and offer them a furnished home for the year. So she did just as she was told by God, and found the exact family she was looking for, and offered them the furnished home. The faith-filled family was matched with a faith-filled woman, and the Lord’s purposes were fulfilled!
Let us be filled with such faith, that the Lord directs us to similarly faithful co-laborers in Christ.
After this insight from the Lord, I quickly reflected on a few Bible stories that seem to reinforce the idea that God directs co-laborers of faith to us in our need.
- Jesus always sent the disciples out 2 by 2.
- God sent Aaron and Miriam to Moses (Aaron and Miriam must have been stirred by God days or weeks earlier to meet Moses, before he even saw the burning bush, Exodus 4).
- Elijah and Obadiah: Elijah thought there were none faithful, that he was alone, but God sent him Obadiah who had saved 100 prophets in caves (1 Kings 18)
- The Shulamite woman with faith to build a room for a prophet, expected a blessing, and then receives a son, who is later raised from the dead (2 Kings 4).
- Many, many others examples.
Hudson Taylor was the same way when he was starting the China Inland Mission. He would refuse to take an offering or beseech funds when he was in Britain or America presenting the needs of the lost in the interior of China in the 1800s. He didn’t want an emotional appeal or a turn of the heart to spur someone to give (usually just a dollar or two). He wanted the Holy Spirit to work overnight or through the week stir the faithful to give as led (usually resulting in very generous gifts by a few individuals). He did this because he was so assured that the Lord would lead him to faith-filled men and women. Read the Hudson Taylor’s Spiritual Secret.
So let pursue God full speed, with faith, and the faith filled expectation that the Lord will guide us to others who are equally, and fully, ‘all-in’ for Kingdom works, for the glory of our Lord, Jesus Christ.
