My phone rang. How inconvenient! I was in the middle of a visit with a dear Emmanuel couple.
My rule is to not answer calls in this kind of setting, but it was a long distance call from a number I didn’t recognize.
So I excused myself, broke my rule and answered the call. It turned out to be a sales call!
In the midst of our busy days, our sometimes hectic lives, our priorities and our quiet moments, God calls. His call is long distance, from heaven above; from eternity; and from our hearts.
He calls to interrupt us, to rouse us. “There is work to be done! It is work of eternal significance. It has life and death implications.” Do you hear this call? Will you answer?
Bob and Cheryl Fox have heard the call, and they have answered by faith. God has called them to leave Emmanuel, and I for one (among many) will miss them when that day comes. They will be going to Niger, Africa.
They will be members of a team that is reaching out to Muslims with the Good News that salvation is not earned by our good works, it is a free gift from God to all who submit themselves to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
With their call God extends a Call to Emmanuel Lutheran Church. We are their Sending Church, their home church, and we are called to become one of their main sources of support. This will not be a cheap line item added to our budget. It is $6000 a year, or $500 a month worth of commitment.
This is the dollar amount God has guided us to propose to the congregation for approval. There is only one way to meet this high calling. We will need to answer the Call of God by rearranging priorities, by reordering spending habits. God’s people are called to Sacrifice. Jesus says to us, “. . . to be My disciple you must deny yourself and take up your cross . . .” (Mark 8:34).
That means that for those who hear and answer the Call there will be changes in our lifestyle, changes in our consumptive lifestyle. Part of what we are spending on ourselves for creature comforts will be re-allocated to the service of the Lord.
The happy news is that God has enough confidence in the people of Emmanuel to extend this privileged call to us. When we hear and answer God’s Call we will be investing in God’s eternal Kingdom and there will be eternal benefits.
As your Pastor, I invite you to sit before the Lord and listen to His still, small voice in your hearts. Is He calling to you make a pledge or commitment to this missionary work? The phone is ringing, you can answer it.
Pastor Tim Cartwright