“And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying, “Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!” So God granted him what he requested.” (1 Chronicles 4:10 NKJV)
“Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost” (Matthew 28:19)
Do you limit the territory in which you spread the Good Word of Salvation through the Lord Christ Jesus? As a writer, with a blog, who lives in a tiny pocket of the world and evangelizes via social media, I never know exactly how far-reaching what the Lord flows through my spirit is. I pray over every post I share that it will reach those whom He desires it to. For me, it’s just not satisfactory having limited time to spend on posts, and utilizing the internet to it’s fullest when He has something to say.
As a disciple of Christ I am called to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ, to all corners of the globe. Upon re-committing my life to Christ in 2009 I knew I was called to write for God – it was clear because before I was even out the gate, I was given a divine appointment and then anointed by the Spirit, to pen and edit a Christian non-fiction book. At that time I also ran an online publication for which I was the founder – upon coming to the Lord my desires for the magazine changed rather rapidly. I used the platform to spread the Gospel down the road, but in the end, was led to shut it down.
Like many “new” Christians, I wanted every one to know Jesus. I wanted to share Him and, well, I tried. There were definitely growing pains in learning how to share His love and not the legality of scripture. God literally pulled me out of the church I was in (for multiple reasons) and for a season, directed me to sit on my floor every chance I got and study the heart and ministry of Jesus. It was after the seed of that lesson had taken root in my heart that I truly began to bear good fruit! It excited me to know that, first and foremost, Jesus loves us and that was the purpose of learning how he loved those whom he ministered to.
We are to emulate His ministry in our own lives and when we understand this, then he will entrust us with His people and expand our territory! We must be weaned from ‘milk’ before we can offer people meat, otherwise we often get it wrong.
It was into my 3rd year of walking that He expanded my territory by taking my preexisting blog and flipping it upside down, taking it from a place where I shared writing and writing tips into a platform to share the Gospel. It was a bit intimidating at first but He slowly led and taught me how to trust Him to take the reins.
Through these writing assignments, I learned more about God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. I also learned a lot about myself as I reflected upon what He showed me through them. This deepened my walk, my desire to grow in and serve, Him only. Then one day I realized that people I didn’t know actually read my blog (due to an onslaught of comments) and were gleaning from the wisdom He gave, the experiences shared and my transparency. He had expanded my territory across the globe and I didn’t do a thing but practice obedience and seek Him in all things.
Earlier this year I was shown favor, and He extended the territory once again, as I was fortunate enough to be accepted as a contributing blogger on LifeNotes, a huge Christian blogging community. It was such a blessing!
Now the Father is expanding my territory in a new exciting way by moving me to a metropolitan area; one where I already know many people: People whom I’ve already begun ministering and witnessing to…and a city I have a heart for. In a little over a week I’ll be relocating to Cincinnati, OH (USA): a.k.a my hometown!
Not only this, out of nowhere He opened up a door of opportunity for me to expand my knowledge of the Holy Bible, while “teaching all nations” and working with other Christians in places like Pakistan. I am always floored at what He puts before me, whom He entrusts me to reach but this…WOW! I was asked by Mr. Chuck Swift to be on the Board of Directors as Managing Editor for Family Study Bible Editing Project, which I’ll share more about after things are up and running.
You see, my deepest desire is to serve Him. Period. I do my darndest (though I often fall very short) to make my daily walk a testimony of His love, grace and mercy to all around me. For Him to answer my heart’s desire and answer that prayer of going back “home” (well, this side of Heaven), after many years away, and entrust me with such a serious opportunity to share the Gospel – stating I am humbled, flattered and awed are putting it lightly!
I am more than excited with anticipation of how He will lead once I’m there. Things will be changing rapidly between life changes (marriage, ministry and re-acclimating to my city) and the expansion of His territory…Let the adventure begin!
“And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” (Mark 16:15 KJV)
Read Part 1 (Love) and Part 2 (Worship) of this series!