A few months ago, I started to teach “English through the Bible” classes to a small group of teenagers. It’s not always easy, and it demands time for preparation, but it’s always worth it. For example, when we were studying the very first Christmas, there always seemed to be some kind of obstacle: the students would be late, they would have forgotten their workbooks, or sometimes they’d simply skip a session without any reason. There were times when I really wondered if I should continue or not. But then, when a Christmas quiz was held at a celebration for a mixed group of Christians, to my surprise and delight my students answered the majority of the questions correctly. So I knew that I had to continue.
I’m also studying for a PhD at the National Academy of Pedagogical Sciences. One of the professors there is a philosophy teacher who has been teaching since Ukraine was part of the Soviet Union. During one of her lectures, she asked for an example of a system that was created from scratch. I started explaining the role of the Creator and the beauty and complexity of His creation, but the professor got frustrated, saying that this kind of talk had no place at a university. Then to my surprise, my classmates began saying that believers have the right to be taken seriously by the scientific world. That was an interesting way, place, and situation to bring my faith into the picture.
It doesn’t matter how big or how small we are, how diverse may be the problems we face, God can make ways for us to meet new people, to talk about our faith, to teach biblical principles, and to bring light to the world and change it for the better.
The choice
Jesus wants to enter into a personal relationship with you and become a very real part of your life both here and now and forever in eternity, but He can’t do either unless you want Him to. He stands meekly and patiently at your heart’s door—perhaps He has been standing there for years—waiting for you to hear Him knocking and open the door.1
You can do so right now by sincerely praying this prayer:
Jesus, please forgive me for all my sins. I believe that You died for me. I open the door to my heart and I invite You into my life. Please fill me with Your love and Holy Spirit, help me get to know You, and guide me in the way of truth. Amen.
- See Revelation 3:20.↑