It was much too beautiful of a day to stay at home one Sunday after church, so I decided to combine a shopping trip with a “farming” trip. I was restless for some adventure, and that is just what the Lord gave me.
That morning, I had preached about God as being the Lord of the Harvest, as Luke 10:2 describes Him. When we make Him Lord of OUR harvest, we can be sure that there will be an abundance of growth from the seeds that we plant whether the seeds are finances or the Word. As I left my house that day, I asked the Lord to be the Lord of the Harvest for me that day. “Where do you want me to plant, water, or harvest?” I asked Him with anticipation growing in my heart. “Lead me to just the right person.”
I drove to a small park and saw five or six people lounging around on a bench. That’s it! I thought. I walked over to them and was drawn to two very unhappy-looking women. One of them had large, sloppy clothes on, and the other woman had a short skirt and skin-tight top on. Her red lipstick and flamboyant eye makeup was impossible to miss. They were a study in opposites. I approached them and remarked, “What a beautiful day.”
Without a smile on their faces, they answered, “Yes, I guess.”
I got right to the point of my stop. “I’m out here praying for people today. May I pray for you?”
Their eyes grew large, and the sloppily- dressed woman said, “I have rheumatoid arthritis in my back, and I’m in a lot of pain. I’m also clinically depressed.”
Like a child getting to eat the first bite of an ice cream cone, I eagerly asked her if I could lay hands on her. She told me that I could. I commanded the pain, arthritis, and depression to leave her, and asked, “Check out your back.”
She moved around and with a look of amazement, she said, “The pain is gone.” Then she began to get teary-eyed, and said, “I feel so happy!”
Then, I turned to the other woman and asked how I could pray for her. She began to cry as she explained that she had made many wrong choices in her life. Because of that, her parents and abandoned her. Then, she pointed to her stomach and said, “My stomach is killing me.”
I commanded the pain to leave her stomach, and her eyes became larger and larger. “The pain is gone!” I also prayed that she would be reconciled with her parents.
While I was praying for these two women, other people were walking up to the bench and talking with each other. I couldn’t help but notice that one man kept telling them, “Be quiet! Shut up! They are praying!” He sounded like a stern “enforcer” from the Puritan era without their polite way of speaking.
I turned to the “enforcer,” and noticed that he had tattoos all over his muscular arms and legs. Hardly a plain patch of skin could be seen. Then, I asked him, “How about you? Do you want prayer?”
He said, “This is amazing that you came here today. I am a member of the Crips gang, and I just decided to leave.”
The Lord of the Harvest had sent me to just the right person. I felt awe rise up I my heart towards my Lord. “This is no coincidence,” I told him, “God sent me here to speak to you. He is the answer that you need. Jesus can set you free. He gave His life for you. It is time to now give Him YOUR life.”
As I was talking to him, he interrupted and said, “Something is telling me that I shouldn’t listen to you, but I know this is what I need.”
“The enemy doesn’t want to lose you,” I replied. “You are right, you need God.” I continued to share the gospel a few more minutes with him, and then asked, “Are you ready to pray with me?”
“Yes, I am,” he said.
I spoke to the whole group and asked that those who desired to give their lives to Jesus to repeat a prayer after me. I was careful to explain that it isn’t the words that mattered. It was the intent of their hearts.
The ex-Crips member, the lady with the short skirt and tight top, and several others gave their lives to Jesus right there in the park. I looked around and didn’t see an unhappy face in the group. Smiles were the order of the day.