Photo Source: www.creationswap.com by Todd White
I woke up this morning thinking about generosity. We have been amazed by the blessings of those who have donated to our adoption fundraiser. There’s a song by Newsong, called, “Give Yourself Away” where the chorus encourages us to be the hands and feet of Jesus. And that the greatest sacrifice we can make is to give ourselves away.
Of course as the hands and feet of Jesus we model our lives after him. We are the answer to prayers offered up by others. I don’t know why God doesn’t just answer every prayer with a miracle straight from heaven. Why can’t he just open up his giant magic bag and pull out whatever we need and just make it appear? It would be a whole lot easier, that’s for sure. Easier to believe in God, and easier to believe our prayers get answered.
But God doesn’t always work that way. He likes his body here on earth (that is to say, Christians) to be the ones he uses to provide the miracles. Paul in Galatians 2 puts it this way: Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. The law of Christ is to love. One of my favorite stories in the book of Acts is the story of Phillip and the eunuch (chapter 8).
Here is a man who was a seeker. He was searching for God and was lost in the scriptures. He knew there was more that he couldn’t understand. He needed someone to help him. He needed a guide. He needed someone to be the hands and feet of Jesus. And up walks Philip, as an answer to prayer, to explain the scriptures, and baptism him into a new covenant relationship with God through belief in Jesus. And I bet to the eunuch it seemed like God pulled a miracle out of his magic bag and dropped down an answer to his prayer.
And the same thing happened with Peter and Cornelius. And the lame man on the temple steps that Peter and John healed. And on and on. All through the Bible, people are the instrument God uses to answer prayers.
I’m sure I don’t know the number of times where I have been an answer to someone’s prayers. I thanks God that I have been used by him to bless others. I know that our God is a miracle-working god. And I am so grateful for his miracles in my life, in particular this week, when so many have been the means by which he has blessed our family.