January 25, 2018PART THREE
“She hath done what she could:. . .” ~ first published in Dr. Milam's book, "Beside Still Waters"
I may never go to another state and hold a revival that last’s three months like Billy Sunday did where there were 48,000 conversions, and churches getting as many as a thousand members during that time. And nearly 700 jail birds less during the same three months. I can’t do that; but I can do something!
Everybody here in reading this can do something. The happiest day of your life is when you find the “One” thing; that God appointed thing; the ordained thing; the right thing- the chosen thing. This I can do, and by the grace of God I’ll do it!
I can’t go around here and start a church that runs 50,000 members every Sunday like some of them do; I can’t baptize several thousand every year and have a building project going for years to accommodate the additions. I can’t do, and you can’t do everything; but we can do something! And don’t get discouraged because you can’t do what somebody else is doing, do what you can do!
I heard in a testimony meeting one time of the things people were doing, and saying they were going to quit. 1) one fellow said, I’ve been drinking liquor, and I’m going to quit; 2) Another man said, I’ve been smoking and I’m quitting; 3) A man even said, I’ve been beating on my wife, and I’m going to quit; 4) Then one old lady got up and said, “I’ve been doing nothing, and I’m going to quit.”
Let’s start doing something for God! Who cares what others think. Don’t worry about what people say about what you are doing. I’ve had people say to me- I don’t like the way you preach, give the invitation, lead the singing, pray, even the way I carry on. So I said, how do you do it? They said back to me, “I don’t do it, and I’ve said back to them, I like the way I do it better than the way you don’t do it!” Mark the person that’s always critical of the way someone else does things, and you’ll find out that they don’t do anything at all.
I’ve heard people sing, that I didn’t’ like the way they did it; I’ve heard people pray that literally bothered me; Some preaching irritates me; some people work on things that I know someone else could do a better job- but at least they were doing something. There are those that go out visiting and don’t have an idea of how to be courteous and kind; but at least they are going. Many people criticize Peter for sinking in the water, but remember, he got out of the boat! Some people just make me nervous, they’d make coffee nervous; they’d give an aspirin a headache. But I like the way they did it better than the way some others didn’t do it. What can you do? Can you bake a cake and fix a meal for a shut in, or run up to the nursing home with a box of warm “footies,” or just go and say hello, and then pray with some one? God will receive great honor and glory for your efforts of making someone a nice meal, a fruit basket, or a box of groceries, with no price tag on it. We are just so selfish sometimes, we think only of our precious feelings.
Can you take gospel tracts where ever you go, and give them to people? The stores; restaurants; bathrooms; mail them to friends, and family, put them in your bills.
I heard of a man that put tracts in empty whiskey bottles, and dropped them in a small stream out in back of his house, for over 20 years, and he’s gotten letters from all over the world where people have read those tracts, and many of them trusted Christ as Savior. You might say, that’s crazy, I’d never do that, I might say the same thing, but I’m not going to do harm to them that do those sort of crazy things- they are doing something. What are you doing? You can do something can’t you!? I know a guy that stops cars right in the street- I wouldn’t do that to tell someone about Jesus; but he does and I’m going to say glory to God, go for it! A man down in Natchez, MS, a former moonshiner, got saved, poured all his shine out, went into town, and blocked the busiest intersection in town, got up on top of his car, started waving a big red hanky, yelling: Jesus Saves! Jesus Saves! A cop came up to him and said get down off that car, you’re violating several laws; but he persisted yelling. The cop saw who it was that had just gotten saved, and said, “If God can save a man like you, I’ll give you a ride on top of my police car, turn the blue light on, and ride you through every street in this city.” I wouldn’t do that, but I would do something.
I know another man that’s really weird, will embarrass you when you’re out with him. He’ll go into bath rooms on purpose, and where he sees feet hanging down inside the stalls, he’ll throw a tract under there or push it through the crack in the door, and say something like; “read that while you wait!” Now I’m here to tell you I’ve never done that, but I’m not going to criticize him.
Christian Service is doing what you can for the Lord it brings glory and honor for Him- that’s what it’s all about. Everybody can’t give millions, but some body can. I heard of a guy inheriting a million dollars, but he had a bad heart, so they were afraid to tell him, afraid he might die on the spot, so they got his Pastor to go tell him. SO the Pastor got to his house and said, Bill, what would you do if you inherited a million dollars? Bill said, why preacher, I’d give the church half of it; and the Pastor had a heart attack and died. I can’t give a million but I can give something. I’m not interested in what you don’t have and won’t ever get; but what do you have right now, what can you offer now? I don’t know what you are going to do with what you have right now, or when you retire; or next week or tomorrow.
Christian service is what you can do for the Lord right now, because you love him. Find something to do and do it- get busy!
The measure of a Christian Service: “She has done what she could….” That is all that God expects of you. If God had wanted me to be someone else, doing something else, He would have made me that way; but He made me to do what I can with what I have to do with- God expects me to do it! Every single person is an original, nobody is a copy; there’s only one of you and one of me. You are important to God, He made just one like you. SO that makes you very valuable. "---Bought with a price---"
You can’t even try to do something that you can’t do, you’ll kill yourself trying; but you can do what you can. A rooster, away from his own hen house, found an ostrich egg, rolled it back to the hen house and said, sisters I don’t want you to think I’m complaining; but look what they’re doing in other places. He was trying to motivate those hens to lay ostrich eggs. But God never expected a chicken to lay ostrich eggs. A Banty chicken lays eggs about half the size of a Rhode Island Red. If a Banty or a regular chicken tried to lay an ostrich egg, and succeeded it would have to be psycho - analyzed or need major surgery. A Chicken just cannot lay an ostrich egg; but it can do what it’s supposed too. (Are you?)
Have a blessed day.
Tom & Linda Milam
Missionaries to America
Phil. 2:16
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