“Sir,” the woman said, “I can see that you are a prophet. Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.”
“Woman,” Jesus replied, “believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”
The woman said, “I know that Messiah” (called Christ) “is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.” Then Jesus declared, “I, the one speaking to you—I am he.” John 4:19-26, NIV
When the disaster relief work crew arrived, their first thought was, “Why are we here?” The home seemed…fine. True, there were two trees down in the yard, but they were well away from the house itself, and this certainly did not appear to be an emergency situation. Surely other families and homes with more damage should have been higher than this one on the priority list.
Since there was very little physical work to be done, the crew started talking with the homeowners. They were an elderly couple: the husband was a believer, but his wife was not. Apparently, she had stopped going to church some time ago, and in her mind, she had determined that if a person didn’t go to church, that meant they couldn’t be a Christian.
“Well,” the team leader pointed out to the woman, “this just shows you that God hasn’t forgotten about you. You stopped going to church, so He brought the church right here to your yard!”
That day, this elderly woman rededicated her life to Christ. The crew then understood why they’d been sent there that day—it was an emergency of a deeper, less visible kind.
You’ve probably heard the phrase, “Be the Church.” What does that look like in your life? How do you “love your neighbor?” How do you reflect the light and love of Jesus to a lost and hurting world? How do you do this in your classroom with your students? With your colleagues?
We don’t really know who we interact with every day: yes, we know their names and faces, but only God knows the true status of their eternal souls and salvation. It’s entirely possible that you may be the only “church” some people ever see. Every day, you are likely to interact with someone who has never seen the inside walls of a sanctuary, and possibly someone who never will. But you have been called to this time, this place, with these people, for “such a time as this” because God, who does know all things, knows that this person needs an ambassador of His light—you—to share the Gospel with them. Even if you’re in your classroom—an environment where you’re restricted from explicitly using the name of Jesus—you can still “be the church” to that person. Demonstrate the love of Jesus, remember them in your prayers, and trust God to do the rest.
Father, we thank you for the privilege of being Your ambassadors. Please give us a fresh, daily in-filling of Your Holy Spirit, so we can pour out Your love to others. We pray that You guide our words and actions every day with the people around us so that we will remember to represent You honorably and faithfully. Please help us to plant the seeds of Your love in the hearts of others, so that in Your perfect timing, they may come to a fruitful harvest. Thank you for allowing us to be part of Your blessing to others. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Copyright Rhapsody Jordan-Parisi.
Rhapsody is a member and high school English teacher from North Carolina. She is passionate about helping overwhelmed teachers reclaim their time and peace of mind through support, encouragement, and intentional strategies. You can connect with her at tightropeteaching.com.
