How beautiful upon the mountains
Are the feet of him who brings good news,
Who proclaims peace,
Who brings glad tidings of good things,
Who proclaims salvation,
Who says to Zion,
“Your God reigns!”

Isaiah 52:7

 

 

Written by: Elizabeth
Oath of God Ministries

 

How beautiful are the feet of him who brings the good news of our salvation in Christ Jesus.  Indeed these are the precious feet that are shod by the preparation of the peace of the gospel which walk upon the paths of righteousness for His Name sake.  

Yet it is inevitable and desirously needed that these same feet descend into the valley of humanity which so often tosses to and fro in restlessness unaware of its pitiful condition and its great need for Christ Jesus.  Out of our comfort zones and into the sea of humanity is where our nets should be cast and where we truly become fishermen of men for Christ. 

But let not the Body of Christ be deceived.  Despite the ethereal images which this scripture seems to evoke and despite one’s station in life – we are all commanded by Christ Jesus to do the same.  

In an unrelenting tone Jesus unwaveringly points beyond the four walls of every church and bids each of us to “…..go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.”  Out of our comfort zones and into the melting pot of humanity is where we must bring the message of salvation.  That said, let us not find any believer in the house of God concocting a thinly disguised excuse to exempt himself from going forth in obedience to satisfy Christ’s Great Commission.  Whether our feet lead us to a family member, a next door neighbor or a distant mission field – let it be a walk of faith emboldened by a passion to please our Lord.   

Yet despite this mandate, which is considered a fair and reasonable service to God, church leadership across America is still not equipping the saints to evangelize.  On the other hand, many are now discovering the rich benefits of offering Don Sunshine’s evangelism seminars to their churches with the goal of strengthening and encouraging believers to evangelize.  Don’s methods are refreshingly simple, biblically grounded and an excellent starting point for any believer despite one’s entry level.   

It is true that once the saint has become equipped – he/she must remain sensitive to the promptings of the Holy Spirit in walking the highways or byways of life to deliver the glad tidings of salvation in Christ Jesus to others.  Yet it is upon one’s obedience to this specific command where the believer’s feet are considered beautiful upon the mountains and where God’s unique blessings await him and not before. 

One way, however, of reaching the world for Christ is through various outreach ministries.  Here we find a heavenly point where evangelism and outreach ministries converge to satisfy both Christ’s Great Commission as well as an opportunity to fulfill our service in Christ towards a suffering world.  

At first, we might mistakenly believe that we need a ministry the size of Franklin Graham’s Samaritan’s Purse where hundreds of thousands of people have been given hope, a higher quality of life as well as the beautiful message of salvation in Christ Jesus.  Yet this is not true. 

Small neighborhood ministries can significantly impact the lives of others and help to serve the community in meaningful ways.  The pastor need not run every charge as he/she may not be anointed to do so and some ministries are not directly tied to the church.  Nevertheless, the appropriate courtesies and communications should be exchanged and one’s direction confirmed by church leadership whereby the call to serve Christ can move forward.  Meeting the needs of people living under hardship by sharing God’s love through Christ Jesus is a heavenly plan which also helps to expand the church’s population, it’s boundaries and local influence.  Nor should any believer be found complaining about the world’s current condition if one has never stepped outside the four walls to make a difference.

Years ago God orchestrated circumstances for me to co-spearhead a housing project ministry.  This was not a ministry I would have chosen for myself yet God used this ministry to soften my heart, to develop compassion for others and to accelerate maturity in my life.  To say the least it was a boot camp experience but I was nevertheless blessed in multitudinous ways.  Many residents received Christ Jesus as their personal Savior, had their challenging needs met by our Lord, and began attending church.  For myself, the petty list of life’s complaints that I unknowingly entertained for years seemed to dissipate into their native nothingness in view of the visible hardships that others endured.  

Years later Christ would require me to spearhead other ministries which again were not on my “to do” list but had a defined purpose in God’s plans for my life.  Church leadership was never burdened by these specific ministries but instead was made aware of what God had called me to do thereby allowing others an opportunity to join the ranks.  

I often ponder the mustard seed beginning of Eleanor McCullen who at the age of 63 began standing outside Planned Parenthood’s clinic in downtown Boston on Tuesdays and Wednesdays of every week.  Today at the age of 78 she continues to be used by God as Christ Jesus’ extended and loving hand to snatch women from the death doors of Boston’s largest abortion mill.  This ministry has also given Eleanor continual opportunities to evangelize women where many have accepted Christ Jesus as their personal Savior.  Due to her unconditional compassion towards pregnant women considering abortion she has consistently stood for Christ in both the sweltering heat and frigid cold and I can only imagine the crowns she will receive at the Bema Seat for doing so.  

Because of Eleanor’s sacrificial efforts many women have been spared the agonizing regret of abortion and hundreds of babies have been saved from a tortuous death.  Eleanor, however, has continually given God something to honor.  There will always be a sacrifice of one’s personal time in any ministry but it’s a choice and for Eleanor it was an easy one.   She chose to go above her reasonable service for Christ Jesus and has taught others to do the same.  

God eventually used Eleanor to change the buffer zone law which restricted her for years in reaching more women from a sidewalk counseling standpoint.  Yes – God showed Eleanor great favor when the Supreme Court of the United States repealed the Commonwealth’s unconstitutional buffer zone law which for years had confined her to its unlawful boundaries.  Nor did any of her services for Christ during this time-frame burden the church leadership but instead gave greater testimony to God’s Glory within the flock.  

Recently this year I had an opportunity to take signatures for a ballot referendum to stop the unmitigated suffering of farm animals in today’s horrid factory farms.  I came to realize that the burgeoning animal welfare movement has become a melting pot of people to include pro-life and socially conservative Christians, Catholics, Evangelicals, human secularists, fiscal conservatives, progressives, blue and white collar workers, gun owners, hunters, senior citizens, preteens, vegans and so many other people holding a variety of different religious beliefs but all of whom continue to express public outrage for needful change for these oppressed animals. (Americans are feeding their children meat, chicken, turkey and pork products that are banned in up to 160 nations worldwide at any given time due to harmful drug residue – a cumulative result of today’s corrupted factory farms, feed lots and food supply chains all of which pervert God’s animal husbandry processes with an iron fist of cruelty and a blind eye to consumer safety)  

To my surprise, I discovered that the animal welfare movement is a rich fertile ground that offers me continual opportunities to speak the gospel of Christ Jesus to an unbelieving world and to offer prayers to other Christian activists.  As I continued to take signatures from a diverse range of people on this referendum I was told by many that I was doing God’s work.  Once again, this unexpected opportunity was never under my radar but when God opened the door I was compelled to walk through it. 

When a church leader refuses to establish or help promote any reasonable outreach ministry for his local community or refuses to build leadership that desires this positive change – one can only ask, “Why?  When Christ stands alone in the marketplace which He so often does – is He crying out, “Adam where art thou?”

Elizabeth
Oath of God Ministries

 

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