The Seed That Grew Into a Forest

My post "Good News" from a few months ago touched on something that I have become increasingly aware of in recent weeks; good news travels fast. Really fast. Recently I've seen this happen with not just any good news, but especially God's good news-that is, the gospel. The gospel spreads through words, yes. People share the gospel every Sunday at church through the preaching of the word. But I've noticed that God also glorifies Himself through other mediums, including music and the transformation of lives, which in turn are used to transform others. I guess the idea of one match lighting a whole room of candles has been overused and even sounds cliche, but I've come to realize that this is both true and very beautiful to watch.

I recently went on tour with my a capella group where we went around the state singing and sharing the gospel. I saw God work in amazing ways as seeds that He had planted 12 years ago bore fruit unexpectantly to us, and just on time to Him. At the beginning of the trip we went downtown to sing and share Christ with the people there. Little did we know that every Saturday night for the past 12 years a faithful group of Christians had been rotating singing on the street corner-with a sound system. They not only allowed us to use their sound system but to sing two of our songs to the growing crowd. How cool that God had planned that from the beginning of time our ministries would intersect and encourage one another for the glory of His name. Their faithfulness to meet every Saturday night and sing to the city resulted in our group having a platform to share our music and pray with several homless people, two of which came to know Christ!

Another way in which I saw God work was in the giving away of our CDs. We christened them "seeds" after realizing the long-term effect that they can have as the result of a one-time gift. It was so encouraging to know that while we could sing and speak of Jesus at a concert, the music that we shared could do that over and over again, being held suspended in time by the confines of a compact disc. We heard testimonies of encouragement gained from our music in the past, and trusted as we gave away CDs that hearts would be pricked in the future. In that sense the whole life cycle of our music was represented at one time or another, and we were fortunate enough to see God working in every stage. One night we met a sweet couple downtown. Music was the only thing that brought us together. It was what we shared with each other in our time together. And it was what we gave them at our parting. I have hope that our love for them and our passion for Christ will live on in the music we gave them, producing fruit for years to come. This idea of one thing multiplying into a thousand other things shows how God is not restricted by time-He doesn't simply work during one interaction, but continues to cultivate the soil of people's hearts long afterwards.

Something else that started in one person and grew to influence many others was the Christlike examples of my friends. As I watched their individual boldness, passion, humility, compassion, and maturity, especially with respect to non-Christians, God was quietly working in my own heart and making plans to use their faithfulness to later speak to many others through me. Tonight I went downtown in my own city to sing and worship with my local Bible study. As a result of much practice at the a capella tour,  God had renewed in me a sense of boldness and urgency that fueled my desire to speak to the non-Christians surrounding me and my friends as we sang. I was able to pray with three different people, two of which I have connected with online and one of which is planning to later attend the youth Bible study at my house! So many lives affected by the faithful examples of others.

In a more general sense God has also used the people in my a capella group, who have become some of my best friends in the entire world, to teach me what it means to live on a secular campus, to have a Christ-centered relationship, and to follow Christ even into the darkest of situations. It's truly amazing how an example, a CD, an interaction, can transcend a momentary event and have a long-term influence on numerous lives, even if only one person tipped the first domino. This is both encouraging and scary, as not only good things but bad things can spread like wildfire. I am encouraged to know, however, that despite threats to His name Christ will accomplish His will and will spread His gospel through even the smallest acts of faith.

John 1:5

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.