OUR JOY Thursday – July 8, 2010

OUR JOY Thursday – July 8, 2010

“For what is our hope, our joy, or the crown in which we will glory in the presence of our Lord Jesus when he comes? Is it not you? Indeed, you are our glory and joy.” – 1 Thessalonians 2:19-20

In 2005, John Forrester was a Southern Baptist North American Mission Board church starter strategist serving in the Arctic of Alaska. A young Eskimo man named Glenn came to his church and said he had given his life to Christ and wanted to be baptized. None of the churches in the area had a working baptistery, but Glenn said that it was fine he could be baptized in the Arctic Ocean.
"I am an Eskimo, I can handle it," he said.
John picks up the story: “The visiting pastor was wearing insulated waders, but I did not have any waders -- I just wore jeans and a shirt. The guest preacher had a thermometer on his boot that registered 40 degrees. The air temperature was 28 degrees and the wind was blowing very hard.
Glenn stripped down to just some swimming shorts and no shirt. The visiting preacher prayed, and then I baptized Glenn. After I took him down under the water, he came up shaking so hard I thought he was going into shock. But he was just excited to be baptized. The visiting mission team videotaped the whole thing. When Glenn came out of the water, he got in front of the video camera and shouted, "My name is Glenn and I just got baptized for Jesus in the Arctic Ocean!"
You know, it seems strange -- while the water was very cold and the wind made the temperature feel even colder, the joy of baptizing Glenn took the sting out of the bitter weather.”

Our joy is leading people to Jesus Christ and to see them mature in the Lord. Today in prayer, thank the Lord for all the people who have helped you in your Christian life and seek to help others in their walk with the Lord.

“A great part of heaven’s bliss for the redeemed will be the joyful presence of those whom they have been used to reach.” – John MacArthur, Jr.

God’s Word: “Therefore, my brothers, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, that is how you should stand firm in the Lord, dear friends!” – Philippians 4:1