Imagine that you want something. Really want it. It's not life and death but it's still a massive deal to you...
Now imagine how you feel when you get the answer no... Maybe it's that you finally asked that cute girl on a date but faced her rejection. Maybe you had sweet weekend plans and then your parents wouldn't let you leave the house. Maaaaaybe you just wanted a second piece of chocolate cake after dinner but your diet simply wouldn't allow.
It doesn't matter what the situation is. "No." Can be a pretty hard answer to swallow.
I faced that answer today. Allow me to share...
I was on the train heading home from Excel like any other day. But today, I noticed that the lady sitting across from me had her head in her hands in quite a downcast way. She was rubbing her neck and looked uncomfortable. I heard her ask the chap sitting behind her to turn his music down because she had a headache The first thing I thought was, "I have Panadol in my bag maybe I should offer her some." But then I thought of something even better. The idea crossed my mind, "What if I prayed for her... Maybe God wants to heal her." Now I usually keep to myself on the train. Sometimes I study or read or just listen to music. Today however, I really felt like I needed to step out in faith here. I began to think about the difference it could make in this lady's life. Things like, "Imagine what she'll say when someone asks her how her day was, 'Oh some girl prayed for me on the train and my headache went away!' or what if she's asking God right now to show her that He's real... I could be the person to speak that into her life!" These thoughts got me pretty excited... Plus I knew that if I didn't say anything and got off the train that I'd regret it so... I took a step of faith!
I've been to many discipleship and leaders training events/camps and one thing that's stood out when I've learnt about this kind of outreach is that it's worth taking the risk. God doesn't heal everyone or change everyone's heart that you talk to, but it's worth trying for the ones that He does heal and change.
So, reminding myself that 'Faith without works is dead.' (James 2:26) I had finally convinced myself to do this... I turned to the lady and said, "Hi, my names Sonya. I noticed that you look like you're in a bit of pain. I just wondered if I could pray for you?"
By the beginning of this post, you probably know what happened next... Even though I asked very nicely and in her best interests I got a very flat, very firm answer, NO.
I replied, "Ok that's fine, no worries." And she said, "Thanks for the offer though." and that was the end of that interaction.
Those times that I've learnt about this sort of thing I've been told that it's unusual for people to reject an offer of prayer. But alas, it happened this time!
This whole scene gave me something to really think about on the rest of my train ride home. I wondered what that lady's story was. What is it that has her completely closed off to the idea of prayer or God? What's she been through or experienced to make her reject my offer of prayer? Why did I feel lead to talk to her if she was just going to shut me down? And what did the other people sitting around us think about our short-lived conversation? I will never know the answers to these questions. But it really is quite interesting eh.
I sat back in my seat and although she didn't want me to pray with her, I did pray for her just in my head. It made me quite sad actually. And I'm not talking about the being rejected part. I mean, the fact that she wasn't open to receiving a slice of God's Kingdom right there on that train. Who knows how it could have effected her life if she'd allowed God into that moment of pain. I believe every person in this world has a longing for acceptance and love and a true sense of purpose. I also believe those things can only truly be found in God. So it hurts that people deny that and even deny His existence. Then it gets me thinking, if it hurts me seeing that, how much does it hurt GOD, the one this offence is against?!
I write this blog, 'Living As A God Girl', because I want to share with people the fulfillment I experience by living for God. I try to take any opportunity that arises to talk about Jesus and the difference He makes to life. Unfortunately, not everyone opens themselves up to that. So, will this rejection stop me from praying for the next person I see on the train that I feel lead to talk to? No way! It's actually got me keen to try this more often.
It's a hard principle of life... But to get the answer yes, one has to run the risk of getting the answer no. That's what God did with us when He gave us free will. It's up to us if we choose to love Him and live our lives in a way that honours Him. It hurts Him when people say no to that... But it also means that when He gets a yes, it's honest, real, and meaningful because the choice is purely ours!
What is your answer to God's call going to be?
