“That I May Know Christ…”

“Grace—I want to read you something!” my mom called to me yesterday afternoon.
“Okay” I said, not knowing that this was going to be an answer to my prayer.

My mom began reading me a newsletter letter from Roy Robertson, founder of TEL (Training Evangelistic Leadership, a missions organization). Here is what he had to share about his wife, who recently went to be with the Lord:

“…above all she gave top priority to her time in fellowship with the Lord. Her life verse was Philippians 3:10: “That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death.”

At this my ears perked up. I had just been memorizing in Philippians yesterday morning and that passage really popped out at me. I specifially prayed that the Lord would give me a deeper understanding of what it means and how to apply it in my life. I realized that this must be an answer to my prayer! Now I was really interested in what the rest of the letter said…

My mom continued reading, “…She rose regularly at 4:00AM in order to get three hours in the Word and prayer. She kept extensive prayer lists and prayed through them both day and night. She carried about her Scripture memory packs and reflected over the verses even while traveling, waiting in line or doing chores. She read through the whole Bible each year taking daily selections from the Old Testament, New Testament and poetic books. Shortly before her homegoing, I asked her how many times she had read through the whole Bible. After reflection she answered, “67 times—twice the year I was saved, and once every year thereafter.”

Wow—her goal really was to know Christ, wasn’t it?! It was obviously the passion of her life!

My mom went on to tell me some more things about what Phyllis was like. My mom had been able to get to know her while our family was in Hong Kong in 1990 helping with TEL and a Billy Graham Crusade. She said that Phyllis was always telling people about Jesus. She was always witnessing to the people sitting next to her on the Subways and buses. Wow, what a life worth living. I wonder what her entrance to Heaven was like.

She is an example of how when someone is walking with Jesus, it simply spills over into their life and their interaction with others. That’s why we should all make spending time with the Lord the #1 priority in our lives! Notice Jesus didn’t say to his disciples, “Go and become fishers of men”. Rather, He said, “Follow me, and I WILL MAKE YOU fishers of men.” (Matthew 4:19)

May you be encouraged, as I was yesterday, to consider everything else as “rubbish” and give the Lord your full attention!

Stephen took this picture a few years ago when we went camping in the mountains. The water was so clear in this Colorado lake, I could see my feet. It made me imagine what the crystal lake in Heaven would be like… when we will truly be with Jesus and see Him face to face.

One more thing: Sarah would like to pass on a big “thank you” to all of you who wrote so many encouraging comments and exciting reports on the last post! It made her birthday very special and she enjoyed reading each comment as they came in… 🙂 Thanks and God bless you all!