Look for the Intersections

if you pray to God he will answers your prayers but not right away so you have to be patient and look for clues because he can talk to you directly or he will do it thru every day things like a single person or thing also he will always be there so you can ask and you can give it all to him and let him work and if he is working. he will give you signs

Ever since receiving our 1x envelope our family has been praying about who God would bring across our path to bless. Yesterday I received a phone call from an unknown number and immediately declined it figuring it was a spam call. Less than a minute later the number called again and I decided maybe I should answer the call. The gentleman on the line identified himself and said he had a delivery from a florist and wanted to make sure someone would be home to accept the delivery. I let him know I was home and as soon as I hung up I felt the nudge that this was who we were to bless with our money. After accepting the delivery my daughter and I spent a few moments getting to know James and a little of his story. He noticed my daughter’s red hair and shared that his son also has red hair. He went on to share that his son is nonverbal and he gave up his career to care for him. He then told us that he and his wife separated and she took his son to Ohio, tearfully he expressed that he missed his son. I told him that we had something for him and explained the 1x challenge. I explained to him that God sees him, God knows what he is going through and that God loves him. He became tearful as he expressed his thanks and gave me a big hug. My daughter and I were so blessed to able to bless this man and play a small part in showing him God’s love.

my sister was diagnosed with covid so my intersection came when I put her on the list at secc to be prayed for but of course I was praying for her as well and now she is doing so much better... prayers definitely get answered

I had the opportunity to meet a new coworker who lives in another part of the country this week. She is very open and engaging and through this I found out her husband has been having an affair and told her just one month ago. This was on top of a move to a new part of the country. During conversation she mentioned church in passing and that was the opening I needed. We talked about the comforts and safety of God. How he is safety net at all times. We decided, while she doesn’t know the reason for this yet, she will look to God to lead her through this and was very inspired by potential mission serving through our company.

Sometimes the intersection that God wants you to step into is one that you have been seeing and praying over for a long time, and sometimes it feels like it comes out of nowhere and you just stumble upon it. It’s when you have an opportunity to speak into something, where someone else were searching. A lot of the time it does not come at a convenient time. It’s not easy or comfortable, but it’s an invitation. What are some ways you're maybe being invited into people's intersections? The intersection may not be very overt. Someone may not say, “Hey, I'm going through this and I really need you to just encourage me and pray for me.” Sometimes people fall into them, and sometimes they're searching and seeking. So, can you think about what some of those moments are and how can you step into them? In the meantime, pray, build a relationship, and then just wait for an intersection because there'll be a time, and it'll be sooner than you think where they encounter that intersection. If you're praying for the person, and if you're connected in relationship, then you will see the interruption that comes. And that's your time to share your story with them.

Sometimes, Christians tend to describe what Jesus asks of us as if we're getting the short end of the stick. When someone is talking about the relationship with Jesus and what it means to make Jesus the Lord of your life, it comes across as a type of apology. They emphasize a walk with Christ as being merely about what you're going to have to give up this, how you can't live this way anymore, and what you can't do what you used to do. If we, as followers of Jesus, are to meet people in these intersections of life, may have to change how we discuss what a walk with Christ looks like. In the parable found in Matthew 13:44, the man finds the treasure, then sells everything he owns because he knows this is the best investment he can make. This is an intersection for this man, where he comes across the treasure and he has to make a decision. His friends and family might think he is crazy and irrational for his choice, but he knows what he is getting in return, so he is able to sell everything with joy and certainty of what he will receive. This is the way we are called to live as Christians, not as though choosing to live for Jesus as one filled of heart-wrenching sacrifices and unfair choices that leave you unhappy and feeling cheated.  You are getting the best return on your investment, more than anyone can ever dream or imagine. Do you make this clear when you talk about your faith with others or have you discussed your faith as though it were an undesirable trade-off? Do you have fellow Christ-followers in your life who need to be challenged to view their relationship with Jesus in this way?

Intersections are happening all around us, and people at these intersections of fear and suffering, and they're more open to the power and presence of God in their life in ways they have never been before. You, in that moment, have an opportunity to speak encouragement and some spiritual truth that you might not have had the opportunity to previously.  Someone could be at the intersection of disappointment and despair, and you saying something to offer support to show them that they aren’t alone could make a world of difference. In that moment, you can teach them more about the love of Jesus than probably any sermon might communicate. They're more moved by an act of compassion. They're more receptive to a word of encouragement. So, there are these windows that we have, where if we see them and step into them, that people are more open to a conversation. People at those intersections are more open than they are at any other time to this sacred awakening.

Have you felt like you’ve been far away from God? Maybe you hadn't been following Jesus, but then you came to this intersection in life and suddenly you were open to the Gospel, where in the past you hadn’t been interested at all.  All of us have someone like that in our lives. They are at this type of intersection and God is inviting you into their intersection so that you can be the person who points them to Jesus. If we learn to look at life this way, where we really pay attention to people’s intersections, God uses us in some pretty unique and significant ways.  Almost of us have the tendency to oftentimes avoid certain people or particular situations. We don't want to run into certain people at certain times, especially if it feels like it could possibly be awkward. But frequently, these awkward moments are your best opportunities to make a difference. The very things we avoid or some of the very conversations we try not to have are some of our greatest opportunities.