Almost every day at lunch, I fill one of the compartments on my toddler’s plate with a vegetable. And almost every day at lunch, he throws that vegetable back at me—literally, he throws it. The kid is a great eater and can match me pancake for pancake when given the chance. But vegetables aren’t his thing lately.
For a while, I just stopped putting them on his plate because I was tired of cleaning them off the floor. But lately, I’ve been committed to getting him to eat his vegetables . . . or at least leave them on his plate.
So every day, I offer them. I put them out there, comment about how good they are, and then watch to see if he’ll take a bite. Ultimately, I’m not in control of whether he likes them or even if he’ll eat them. My job is to offer it and tell him how good it is.
We can share God’s love and the message of salvation in the same way. Every opportunity we get, we can offer love and tell others how good it is, but we don’t get to decide whether they accept it—that’s a choice they must make on their own.
After three days in a row of having vegetables thrown at me, I can get a little discouraged. I find myself wondering why am I even trying? But I keep trying because I know the vegetables are good for him and I believe that one day, he’ll eat them.
We, too, can get discouraged as we share God’s love and message with someone who continuously throws it back in our faces. It might feel like the love we’re pouring out is being wasted and we may as well give up.
But God doesn’t waste any offering of His love or His Word. As we offer His love and the message of salvation, we can be confident that God will use our offering in some way. It may not be the way we expect it—that the people we tell suddenly open their hearts and receive His love and grace—but He will not let our efforts be wasted.
It is our job to be faithful and diligent in telling others about Christ, then we can hand over our work to the Lord and expect Him to use it.
Lord,
Please give me the courage to keep sharing Your Word and Your love in a world that doesn’t always want it. Strengthen me when I get discouraged. Help me trust in the Holy Spirit’s ability to bring people to saving faith instead of my own efforts. Help me be bold and persistent in sharing my story of how you have worked in my life. Thank You for saving me. Thank you for using me. May it all be for Your glory.
In Your will, through Your power, and for Your glory,
Amen
*Want to join me in meditating on God’s Word this week? Save these words as your lock screen. Write them on a notecard and place them somewhere you’ll see them during your day. Throughout the week, recite them to your kids, your spouse, or a friend. When we focus on His word, He will use it to produce results in our lives.
