BY DR. JOHN SULLIVAN
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR-TREASURER
FLORIDA BAPTIST CONVENTION

Planting seeds for the harvest

Sept. 8, 2006

During the past two weeks I have been sharing some articles written by my good friend, Dr. Sumner Wemp. I hope you enjoy their encouragement as much I do:

A lady in our church, when I was a pastor of a Southern Baptist church by the way, asked me if I would go see a friend to whom she had been witnessing. Long before this instance, I found out sheep follow the shepherd. If I wanted our people to witness I must lead the way.

I knocked on the door at the address she had given me, a lady answered. I asked, “How do you do, is this Mrs. Johnson?”

She replied, “I am sorry but Mrs. Johnson lives next door.”

I apologized for bothering her and graciously offered her a gospel tract.

She looked at it and said, “That's funny, someone else gave me one of those about a week ago.” My blood started pumping a mile a minute. Isn't it amazing how God will get you to the right house with the wrong address!

“Did you read it?” I asked.

“Yes,” she said in a serious tone.

“Have you thought much about it,” I continued.

You should have seen her. She burst into tears and said, “That is all I have been able to think about all week.”

I told her how God loved her and how the Lord Jesus suffered and died for all her sins, paid the debt in full, rose again and was seen by hundreds of people. In other words, I simply preached the gospel to her.

It was beautiful the way God opened the eyes of her understanding (Matt 13:23) and she gladly bowed her head and prayed with me to receive the Lord Jesus as her Savior. She confessed the Lord publicly, was baptized and joined the church. Later she taught Sunday school for years.

I get goose bumps, every time I think about this. Wait until we get to heaven and the man who gave her the first tract, finds out he has a “crown of rejoicing” waiting for him for he had just as much to do with her getting saved as I did. One plants the seed and sometimes another picks the fruit but God always gets the glory.

Oh, dear people, that is how we change the world, one soul at a time. Let's all go fishing and change this depraved world for the glory of God.

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You may contact Dr. John Sullivan at 1-800-226-8584, ext. 3015, or by e-mail.