John 4:51-54 As he was now going down, his slaves met him, saying that his son was living. So, he inquired of them the hour when he began to get better. Then they said to him, “Yesterday, at the seventh hour, the fever left him.” So, the father knew that it was at that hour in which Jesus said to him, “Your son lives”; and he himself believed, and his whole household. This is, again, a second sign that Jesus performed when He had come out of Judea into Galilee.
On the way home, some of the royal official’s slaves met him, to give the good news that his son had survived the illness and was out of the woods, so to speak. Of course, the official was curious about the timing of the turn around. When they told him that it was at 1 p.m., the same time Jesus had said, “Your son lives,” it’s not hard to imagine the impact. We don’t know what happened on the rest of the journey home, but once he got home and shared what happened, not only did the official believe in Jesus, but so did the whole household—family and slaves.
The encouragement these verses have for us today is that when we love one person in Jesus’ name, we are probably introducing an entire network to Him. As we love and share Christ with a serviceman who comes to repair an AC unit, the ripple effect may extend to family, friends, and work associates. For example, as I spoke briefly to our waitress at a restaurant and asked how I could pray for her, she immediately told me about her mom who had just been diagnosed with cancer. She also told us she was going to be moving to go to a university in the state. As I’m thinking about her, I realize Jesus could put hundreds of people in her path in the next year, and if God causes the seeds planted to bear fruit, there’s no telling what the impact of a few minutes of loving with Jesus can have.
Think for a moment about your own network and Jesus’ influence in their lives through you. Jesus loves everyone in your life that you love when you live with Him. We ask for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit in our lives, so the kingdom can advance in this world. That’s how our Father works. He touches one life with a view toward glorifying His name in many others. So let’s be encouraged by the ripple effect of the love of God.
I invite you to become a partner in our ministry. Would you pray about becoming a regular supporter of Elijah Ministries and the Live to Love with Jesus ministry? I hope you will receive the joy and benefit of “giving it forward,” so others may receive encouragement to turn their hearts to God and to live to love with Jesus. You may give online or send a check to the address listed at www.spiritofelijah.com/donate.
