“My elderly mother has been having some health problems and I think she needs some encouragement.  Since you’re a pastor, could you bring your family and maybe pray, or sing....or, I don’t know, but just talk with her?”

  I think that I nearly swerved off the road before I could quickly answer, “Why, of course!  And thank you for the invitation!”  

  I breathed a word of thanks to the Lord, and thought with a smile, “A request like that...?  This lady knows the way to a missionary’s heart!”

  We agreed on a time, and a few days later, we were all assembled in the humble living room down the dirt road from our house.  In addition to our family, there was the lady who had invited us, her mother, and another friend.  They listened carefully as we sang, the children played a few hymns on their bells, and Oksana read from the Bible.  

  And then, I had the privilege of sharing the gospel with them and showing them from God’s Word that salvation is available to them through faith in Jesus Christ!  As I observed them listening to us, I realized that these dear people had almost certainly never actually heard the true, Biblical message of salvation.  This was the first time!  

  In the end, I showed them how to pray a prayer of repentance and faith, and also prayed for them, asking the Lord to visit their home with His blessing and salvation.  

  As we left, they expressed their gratefulness, but it was our hearts which were full of gratitude for their invitation.  What a blessing it is to explain the wonderful news of redemption to people who hadn’t known the way to God!  Like so many, they assume that is is through good works or religious rituals.  How fulfilling it is so show people, for the first time in their lives, that it is the gift of God by grace through faith!

  And what about us?  Although we have known this good news for so long, may God help us to never forget “how precious did that grace appear the hour I first believed.”  May we never lose the wonder of it all.