December?!? Yesterday was the first day of the month and we are now in the last month of the year. Spiritually speaking, this is not the time to shift into neutral and coast through the rest of 2019. How you finish this year will likely determine how you begin the new year.
December is in many ways one of the greatest months for the gospel. People in general are warmer, more receptive. Churches and communities have a host of opportunities for talking about the coming of Christ – and why He came! Family and friends who are often separated come together. December is a month of divine appointments.
Divine appointments is an expression I have used for those moments when God has brought some needy soul across my path. No doubt, there have been many more than I have recognized! I believe in the providence of God and have witnessed the miracle of His arranging and rearranging circumstances in the pursuit of one soul.
Would you pray that God would give you a divine appointment this month?
- All people need the gospel. God loves all people and Christ died for every man (John 3:16). All have sinned and all need to be saved (Romans 3:23; 1 Timothy 2:4). You can’t witness to the wrong person, because everyone needs to hear the truth and make the decision of what they will do with Christ.
- It is impossible to speak to everyone. Christ Himself knew all people, and yet He did not go everywhere. He did not heal everyone. We are limited by time and in our physical bodies. What did Jesus do? He went to individuals. What did Paul do? He went into a city looking for individuals to converse with about Jesus. You can’t reach everyone – but you can reach someone! You can’t go everywhere – but God can use you somewhere!
- There is some heart that God has prepared or that God wants to prepare. Jesus is a seeking Savior (Luke 19:10). Somewhere there is a seeking sinner (Acts 10). Now there must be some seeking messengers!
Your month will be full of appointments – church meetings, school programs, work parties, family get togethers – but do not miss the appointments God has made for you!
Dr. Walter Wilson, a medical doctor and tremendous soul winner, developed the habit of praying every morning before he left his room for divine appointments that day. His book, Just What The Doctor Ordered, is full of stories of how God answered those prayers. Dr. Wilson wrote, “The Holy Spirit is always ready, waiting, and willing to lead yielded servants in paths that are profitable.”
May God give you divine appointments this December.