Roaring With The Ambulance

Matt 18:19-20 Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.

There is opportunity for ministry in every situation we face in life. Even the unexpected events that may cross our path at times. However, our mindset may not always be on the spiritual. Opportunities may be missed. Of course I don’t think it would be realistic to expect someone to catch everything, but we can take a more deliberate approach to identifying opportunities.

Blazing Sitens

Recently I was out driving in town and suddenly I heard the roaring sound of an ambulance as it speedily traveled down the street. Of course all the cars began pulling over to make way for an emergency situation. None of us in our cars probably knew what was happening. The siren was enough to let us know that there was some sort of emergency occurring at that moment.

What if…

Every individual in their car who pulled over was given an opportunity for ministry at that time, just like any time a situation like this arises. What if instead of just pulling over, we all took that time to pray for the individuals involved in the emergency, including for the driver and paramedics traveling to the scene. What about the individual who may be in trouble, the family members, or the doctors and nurses who may need to treat them? We may not know their names or their situation, but God does.

Spiritual Seeds

Ministering doesn’t always involve seeing the end result. Sometimes it’s just about planting seeds and letting them grow, and prayer is very much a part of ministry that can involve planting seeds. Maybe they’re healing seeds, or ones for safety. They could even be for something completely different. The important thing is that we’re ready to plant them, and we don’t have to necessarily plant them alone. We can plant them with others. Even those we may not know.

A Focused Pause

Sometimes the hardest challenges in life can involve overcoming ourselves. Our bad, and sometimes selfish, habits that lead to ignorance of the world around us. I know there are times when I pull over for a siren and my initial thought goes to counting down the time to when the ambulance will be far enough past so that I can pull back out on to the roadway. I’m wasting that pause though. I’m not likely to get out on the roadway any faster if I stop and make that ten second prayer. Now what if everybody who was stopped said a quick prayer? God would respond to us and the situation. We have a Living God! He is a God of action that responds appropriately.

God’s willingness to be involved was demonstrated when Elijah faced the prophets of Baal. Actually Elijah used this to mock the “prophets” he was in a showdown with. He implied that maybe their gods were off taking a snooze, but he knew his God was living and ready to respond.

1 Kings 18:26-27 And they took the bullock which was given them, and they dressed it, and called on the name of Baal from morning even until noon, saying, O Baal, hear us. But there was no voice, nor any that answered. And they leaped upon the altar which was made.And it came to pass at noon, that Elijah mocked them, and said, Cry aloud: for he is a god; either he is talking, or he is pursuing, or he is in a journey, or peradventure he sleepeth, and must be awaked.

God is living, and not just out there somewhere we aren’t certain of, but within us. We carry Him with us when we’re home, at work, in church, or even on the side of the road waiting on an ambulance. He hears us and guides us. He is also personal and stays involved in the matters of our lives.

1 Tim 4:9-10 This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation. For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe.

Powerful Prayer

Pray is not just speaking with God, but also a matter of confidence. We need to understand that God hears us and responds according to His will.

1 John 5:14-15 And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.

This means that if we know of a sudden emergency, we can also know He is there for us, and for the circumstance. Now join that with praying with other individuals, and now we’re establishing a powerful intervention that far surpasses the strength of any emergency. We have extended a lifeline and a rescue through prayer. Maybe to someone who hasn’t received the gift of salvation. Maybe their emergency, that we got involved with through prayer, is what God will eventually use to bring them to Jesus Christ.

Conclusion

Lifting up our voice to God, even in the silence of a prayer, is one of the amazing things we can do as Christian. It gives us a chance to connect with the Creator and make an impact on the world around us. It can even be a shield to others or provide them the extra assistance they need during an emergency. Roaring ambulances are one example of an opportunity we can seize to be involved, even when we don’t fully understand the situation. The important thing is that we’re doing our part while also participating in a relationship with the Living God. Thank you for reading and God bless.