This message is the fourth in a series on encountering Biblical truth through the Gospel of John, which I introduced in a previous post. https://janetdecaster.com/encountering-the-truth/
John 10:27
My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow Me
As I continue to share on encountering truth* through the Gospel of John, I stop at John 10:27 to share a testimony of one ‘sheep’ (a/k/a a follower of Jesus), who followed ‘The Good Shepherd’ (Jesus Christ) to her local coffee shop. Grab a cup of coffee, pull up a chair and enjoy this true story of how God used me as His witness when I least expected it.
The following testimony is a repost of an excerpt from my book,
God Speaks: The Guidance of the Holy Spirit in the Book of Acts & Today**
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I have a favorite coffee shop. Located in a charming old farmhouse, it is one of my most cherished places to quietly sit and read the Bible before the start of a busy day. When I lived just around the corner, I often went there in the early morning and got lost in the pages of my Bible amid the din of conversations and the smell of roasting coffee. I liked to read there after dropping my children off at school and before I went to work at the local church where I was on staff for several years.
One early morning, cup in one hand and my Bible in the other, I was headed to the back of the coffee shop to find an out-of-the-way nook to read. I was intent on self-isolation that particular morning. I had an unusual impression as I proceeded out of the front room, with its clamor, through the middle room and toward the back. “Go sit in the green chair,” a quiet thought came. That seemed odd, as I wasn’t thinking anything of the kind. I had already passed a set of green chairs in the noisy front room and had no intention of sitting there. Again, the same impression came a second and a third time. “Go sit in the green chair,” a quiet voice seemed to speak into my heart. Now, I’ve walked with the Lord long enough and studied His word carefully enough to pay attention to this kind of thing. I have known and experienced the still, small voice of the Holy Spirit. I made a quick mental assessment of the situation and realized it was unlikely to be ‘my’ idea, since nothing could be further from my own intention that day.
Obediently, but reluctantly, I turned around and headed back toward the crowded front room, sitting in one of the two comfortable green chairs. I happily noted that the other chair was unoccupied. I then dismissed the notion of the Holy Spirit’s leading, attributing it to my thought, and hunkered down to read.
I was happily engrossed in personal Bible study when a man came up and sat in the other green chair. I turned slightly away, hoping to avoid even a polite hello to this stranger, wanting to protect ‘my’ time. Also, based on my personal boundaries, I would not normally converse with an unknown man. It wasn’t long before the man interrupted me with an unusual declarative statement, in a tone which caught me off guard. Instead of a polite small-talk greeting, the stranger declared, “You’re just like my wife!” ‘What?’, I thought to myself. He ignored my body language and said, “She’s always reading the Bible, too.” He did not seem particularly happy about that fact, I might add.
It dawned on me that this was a person to whom God intended me to speak. ‘So that’s why I was supposed to go and sit in the green chair,’ I thought. Resigning myself to the loss of what I perceived to be ‘my’ time, I patiently listened and answered while this total stranger proceeded to fire Bible questions at me, one after the other. It turned out to be a rather lively and engaging conversation. Finally, I suggested that perhaps he would enjoy reading the Bible as much as his wife did. He said he would consider all that I said.
During our exchange, I became very certain that, in response to a wife’s prayers for her unbelieving husband, the Holy Spirit had guided me to the green chair before the man arrived. I was in the right place at the right time to answer his questions. I never saw him again, but I trust that God used me as one who helped him along in his journey toward faith.
That day, I had followed Jesus, ‘the Good Shepherd’, on the road of my everyday life to a green chair in my local coffee shop. What a delightful reminder to know that God is busy answering prayer, and that I got to play a part in this one!
How About You?
Could you pray and ask Jesus to help you tune into His voice? You’re sure to end up on an exciting adventure with Him! He is ready, willing, and able to speak to you. He said He would. Check out His promise in John 10 at https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John%20%2010&version=NLT
If this post encourages your walk with Jesus, I would appreciate your PRAYERS and social media SHARES! You can also sign up below to receive posts directly via your EMAIL inbox. Thanks for stopping by.
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- *The Holy Spirit is referred to by Jesus (as He prophesied about the outpouring of the Spirit that would begin on Pentecost) as “the Spirit of TRUTH” in John 15:26. Check it out at https://www.bible.com/bible/compare/JHN.15.26
- **For more of a Bible-based perspective on how God is speaking today, check out my Bible study curriculum, GOD SPEAKS: The Guidance of the Holy Spirit in the Book of Acts & Today, available here on my website and on Amazon at HTTP://amazon.com/author/janetdecaster
