Since our team has gained a deaf missionary, we are learning to communicate without sound. Communication still takes place, although team meetings and meals may be a little quieter.
We are also experiencing a season of quieter ministry due to ongoing insecurity in our region—churches have toned down their loudspeakers and pulled back on open-air evangelism. Quieter methods are required as we seek to encourage believers and share Christ with those who are searching.
Last month I was praying in the hospital chapel while the rest of our team visited the sick. As I prayed, a man entered and sat down across from me. I looked up and asked if he needed prayer. His response was humble and contrite: “I have led a very bad life and am tired of all the wrong stuff I am doing. I have heard that Jesus can make me a new person. Is it true?”
After a silent prayer asking God for help, I had the joy of leading that man in a prayer of confession and salvation. Minutes later, our hospital team informed me three others had prayed to receive Christ!
So much happened during that “silent night” so many years ago. A Savior was born. Angels sang. Shepherds visited.
“Silence” often means God is quietly working behind the scenes to accomplish His divine purposes. The Prophet Isaiah reminds us that silence can be a good thing: “In quietness and confidence is your strength” (Isa. 30:15). Pray that our team will have that same confidence as we seek quieter ways to share Jesus during the Christmas season and throughout the New Year.
by an Alliance international worker, serving in West Africa