Some years ago during my regular reading of Scripture, my heart was blessed again by Jesus’ compassion: “When He saw the crowds, He had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd” (Matthew 9:36).[1] This observation moved Jesus to command His disciples, “… pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.” Then God brought to mind the promise in 1 John 5:14, “And this is the confidence that we have toward Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.” This promise motivated me to pray regularly and earnestly for God to call men from among the churches of western Canada to be workers in God’s harvest here.
Then I became aware of one young man in our church – I will call him John – in whose heart God seemed to be working. John began attending the church with his parents when he was six years old. Through those early years he made a profession of faith on three different occasions, but in his heart he knew each profession was false. At the age of sixteen, he heard a message from Matthew 7:21-23, and the Holy Spirit gripped his heart with the expression, “… depart from Me, you workers of lawlessness!” John knew this was what Jesus would say to him! At home after the service, John opened his heart and truly trusted Christ as Savior.
Immediately, he wanted to obey the Lord. He was baptized and wanted to tell all his friends at school about Christ. It was a fertile field for evangelism because though it was a Christian high school (Dutch Reformed), most of the students thought they were going to heaven despite their worldly behavior. Friends and family told him that his zeal for the Gospel indicated that God wanted him in the ministry. But John was resistant to the idea because not only were most pastors he knew poor, but ministers also were not regarded very highly in society. John wanted both money and esteem.
When he started university, he decided to pursue a pre-med major, though later he switched to a biochemistry program. In the providence of God, however, two things dissuaded John from this course. First, he didn’t enjoy studying the sciences. If you asked him what he did enjoy, it was Bible study and working for the Lord. Second, his grades were declining. John faced a decision. What did God want him to do? His pastor advised him to commit to one year of classes at Foundation Baptist College. Similarly, I advised John to take a class as a test to see if God would confirm His calling on his life. He let go of his former aspirations and committed himself to study at FBC.
One of the first things he noticed about his new studies was how much he enjoyed the work. He loved class preparation and the lectures. Initially, John was scared about such a dramatic change in careers, but God did several things to encourage him. He married the love of his life, a girl who was completely committed to God. What did she think about John going into vocational ministry? Because she always thought God would have her marry a pastor, she was more than a little supportive. John has also been serving as a deacon and preaching at the church. His gifts have been repeatedly recognized by church leadership, and the Lord is giving him fruit for his service.
John still sometimes questions his effectiveness as a preacher/teacher. He stuttered when he was younger, and the adjustment of his native accent to English has not always been smooth. However, God encouraged him with a recent study of the call of Moses, and he also learned that the Puritan Richard Sibbes stuttered and yet God enabled him to overcome that and gave him an effective preaching ministry. God’s continual confirmation of His servant is the joy he has in every part of serving Christ. A passage that sustains John is Ecclesiastes 12:13-14, “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: fear God and keep His commandments, for this is man’s all. For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil.”[2]
[1] Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are quoted from the English Standard Version (ESV), Crossway, 2010. All rights reserved.
[2] New King James Version (NKJV), Word Publishing, 1997. All rights reserved.