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Trek 2008 - True Love
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Trek 2008–True Love
By Cheryle M. Touchton
The Pocket Full of Quarters Lady
For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jer 29:11 NIV
Would you recognize true love if no one had ever really loved you? Sheep know their master and yet they wander away anyway. They don’t mean to but they do. They just get to nibbling and they wander. They look up and they are lost. When they finally hear their master’s voice, they feel instant relief. The one that loves them is calling their name. What if a sheep had never heard the voice of someone who loved then?
On Sunday, between worship services, Julie and I went to the mall to minister together. At lunch, we met beautiful brown haired smiling Auna. (see Washington – Seattle Area) “Can I help you?” she asked. “What would you like to drink?” I’m not sure if I felt or saw the shadows behind the smiling eyes but I wondered if we could help her.
Julie and I ordered and talked but Auna haunted me. I knew she was busy but I couldn’t get away from the feeling that she needed to hear about the true love of Jesus. When she came back to the table, I began a conversation.
Auna was born in South America and abandoned by her natural parents. At age four, people adopted her and brought her to America. I’m not sure what happened to her adopted parents but at age sixteen, she ended up in a foster home. At 26, she was in the middle of getting a divorce. The closest thing to true love she had ever found was from her foster parents.
“Are you a Christian?” I asked.
“I’m not sure,” she said. “I believe in God. My foster Mom was a Christian and took me to church.”
“May I tell you what I mean by that question?” I asked.
“Sure,” she said eagerly.
“It is really simple. A Christian is someone who believes in the birth, death, and resurrection of Jesus and who has confessed their sins and asked Jesus to be a part of their life. Have you done that?”
“No,” she said. “I guess I haven’t. ”
Julie spoke up. “If you had done it, you would know. It changes your life. ”
“Is your foster mom a good person?” I asked.
“She is,” Auna answered. “She is actually wonderful.”
“Then I’ll bet she’s praying for you. That’s probably why God sent us today.”
Auna laughed. “I’m sure she is praying.”
“If she is a good person and your role model for Christianity, why haven’t you become a Christian?” I asked.
“Because I have some supposedly Christian friends who aren’t so good,” she said. “They don’t impress me.”
“I’m sorry,” I said. “That is the number one reason I hear for why people reject Christ. I just met another man who said the same thing. I wrote a story on my website site about throwing the baby out with the bathwater. Your friends are not Christ-like and that is definitely dirty bathwater that needs to be tossed out. I beg you not to throw the Baby Jesus out with the dirty bathwater. Auna, you’ve had a difficult life. Julie and I were just talking about how life changes when we accept Christ. Inviting Christ into your life is so simple. All you have to do is pray a short prayer. You can’t even imagine what exciting things God has planned for you.”
Auna looked hopeful so I continued. “I have a tract here that tells you how to do it. If I give it to you, will you read it and do what it says?”
“I will,” Auna said, reaching for the tract.
I opened it up and showed her the first lines. “It says God has plans to prosper you. Everything in your life can change today if you do what the tract says.”
“Is your e-mail address on here?” she asked.
“No,” I said. “But I have a card. E-mail and tell me about your decision.”
“I will,” she said, taking the card.
When she left, Julie and I both were in tears. “She is going to invite Jesus into her life. I can feel it,” I said.
“She is,” Julie agreed.
“If Auna was the only person this ministry ever helped…” I stopped because I couldn’t continue.
Julie finished my sentence. “It would all be worth it.”
People have let Auna down all of her life. Christ will never let her down. If she opens the door to Christ, she will find the true love that she has sought her entire life. I pray that she recognized the true love of the voice of her master calling.
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Cheryle M. Touchton is the Director of Pocket Full of Change Ministries. For more information or to schedule a speaker for an event, go to www.pocketfullofchange.org or call Gail Golden at 904 316-5462.
This ministry exists because people like you are called to help fund the work of the kingdom. To help keep the Pocket Full of Quarters Lady on the road as a traveling missionary, send your tax deductible contribution to Pocket Full of Change Ministries, POB 51205, Jacksonville Beach, Florida 32240.
© Pocket Full of Change Ministries
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