I stood face to face with a man in the red dirt of a village in Malawi. Was he listening as I tried to introduce him to Jesus? I saw no sense of wonder in his countenance. So, something inside me questioned his interest even as he prayed to ask Jesus to be his Savior. Soon, he headed over the hill, and I turned to another villager.
Consider the Power of Wonder
Time passed. While I spoke to a couple in front of a mud hut, a young girl approached me from behind and tugged at my shirt. “A man over the hill wants to talk to you. Follow me.”
Then the young girl led me to a construction site. The man with whom I had prayed earlier stood with a dozen men. He said, “Sir, please share that powerful story you told me with these men.” I stood in the hot African sun, bathed in conviction. Because somewhere deep within, familiarity with God’s message had overshadowed the wonder for the Savior in my heart from the power of the gospel on my lips. And I had missed the signs of wonder in my new friend’s eyes.
Dare to Face Our Reality
And today, Debie Thomas jabbed my holiday soul and connected yesterday’s African conversation with the promptings of today’s Christmas story. She wrote,
It is not that the Annunciation leads Mary out of doubt and into faith; it is that her encounter with the angel leads her out of certainty and into holy bewilderment. Out of familiar spiritual territory and into a lifetime of pondering, wondering, questioning, and wrestling.
Center for Action and Contemplation
Take Our Confusion to God
May God guide us through the noise of the season’s voices into the sheer wonder of His indescribable efforts to meet us where we are. Thankfully, when we connect with Him, He promises to accompany us in a “lifetime of pondering, wondering, questioning, and wrestling” as we seek to shape our faith in Him. His most repeated promises remind us that He will not leave us on our life’s journey. Why? Because from the beginning, He has placed His faith in us. Can you hear Him call, “Where are you?”
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How to Rediscover Wonder This Season
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Posted: December 13, 2022 by Harry Lucenay
I stood face to face with a man in the red dirt of a village in Malawi. Was he listening as I tried to introduce him to Jesus? I saw no sense of wonder in his countenance. So, something inside me questioned his interest even as he prayed to ask Jesus to be his Savior. Soon, he headed over the hill, and I turned to another villager.
Consider the Power of Wonder
Time passed. While I spoke to a couple in front of a mud hut, a young girl approached me from behind and tugged at my shirt. “A man over the hill wants to talk to you. Follow me.”
Then the young girl led me to a construction site. The man with whom I had prayed earlier stood with a dozen men. He said, “Sir, please share that powerful story you told me with these men.” I stood in the hot African sun, bathed in conviction. Because somewhere deep within, familiarity with God’s message had overshadowed the wonder for the Savior in my heart from the power of the gospel on my lips. And I had missed the signs of wonder in my new friend’s eyes.
Dare to Face Our Reality
And today, Debie Thomas jabbed my holiday soul and connected yesterday’s African conversation with the promptings of today’s Christmas story. She wrote,
Take Our Confusion to God
May God guide us through the noise of the season’s voices into the sheer wonder of His indescribable efforts to meet us where we are. Thankfully, when we connect with Him, He promises to accompany us in a “lifetime of pondering, wondering, questioning, and wrestling” as we seek to shape our faith in Him. His most repeated promises remind us that He will not leave us on our life’s journey. Why? Because from the beginning, He has placed His faith in us. Can you hear Him call, “Where are you?”
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Category: Holidays Tags: Christmas, Malawi, wonder