The Searching

 Greetings to you all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ,

      I remember as a young boy, that there was a certain mushroom that my parents liked. After a summer rain, we would wait about an hour and then all get in the car and travel the back roads of Indiana. My father would drive slowly and my mother and myself would peer out the window, hoping to spot a large mushroom. Once one was spotted, we would all yell out, "There's one." The car would stop, we would all get out and then proceed to pick as many as we could. Sometimes, they were so large, that only a few of them would fill our small bags. Searching for wild mushrooms reminds me of searching for the lost. Mushrooms were all around us. But, we only chose this one type, because it was easily recognizable and not to be confused with any poisonous variety. We probably passed over many others which were right in our own back yard. Sometimes, we do the same thing when we look for someone to whom we can witness. We look for just the right person and then proclaim to ourselves, "There's one. I'll share with the gospel with that person." But Peter and John and the other disciples didn't proclaim the gospel message to just a select few. They proclaimed it to everyone. Acts 5:42 says, "And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ." They preached it daily in the temple and in every house. They were often accused of turning the city upside down with their preaching. They left no person who had not heard the gospel message. I sometimes think that we are looking for that select few who will either benefit the church or that would be easy recipients of the message. Since we don't like to be scorned or rebuked, we seek out those who will be less contentious than others. When a person decides to be a missionary, we don't ask them what they are going to do on the field as much as what they are doing here and now. We usually find that if a person is sharing Christ at home, that is in his or her home church, that they will also do it on the field. But, if they are not witnessing here, then they won't witness on another continent. When a person is put into your life's path, don't look for another to whom to share God's blessings. Share them with the one that is before you now. Remember. The gospel went out from Jerusalem to the utter most parts of the earth. It didn't bypass Jerusalem. So, begin where you are and look for that person today that will be the recipient of the Good News of salvation.