“…NOT MANY WISE…NOT MANY MIGHTY…NOT MANY NOBLE ARE CALLED” (1 Corinthians 1:26)

“Are you interested in evangelising children and in leading them to Christ? If so, please write to me at the following address…”

In the early days of CEF of Ireland, I as a young CEF national  director inserted this advertisement in the Lurgan Mail, our local newspaper, and in my youthful enthusiasm, I naively expected a deluge of replies. Looking back, it now seems a strange thing to have done.

I only received one letter! It was not well written, had several spelling mistakes, and the grammar left much to be desired! I was disappointed. But I visited the address given at the top of the letter. When I met and spoke with the writer of the letter, I was, at first, even more disappointed. He had a pronounced limp and did not speak very clearly and certainly not eloquently; He did not give the impression of being able to teach or evangelize children.

BUT Jimmy Walker had a burden for children and he wanted, with all his heart, to evangelize them. He explained to me that God had called him to do so, and I was thrilled that, from that moment, Jimmy became my friend and co-worker and remained so for the years which followed. He became a fine children’s evangelist and counsellor and God used him in the lives of multitudes of children. He taught a weekly Good News Club for many years, and he had a very fruitful ministry out on the streets of his home town, Lurgan, using his Wordless Book to evangelise the children and lead many of them to Jesus Christ.

Jimmy is now with his Lord and has received his well-deserved “Well done, good and faithful servant.”

I can very much identify myself with dear Jimmy because God called me, 65 years ago, as a very young Christian, into a ministry of child evangelism and to begin the work of Child Evangelism Fellowship in Ireland. I did not have the physical problems Jimmy had, but in some ways my problems were greater; I was just recently saved, I had no evangelical background, I knew very little about the Bible, I had no training and no experience or ability in speaking to and evangelising children. BUT GOD CALLED ME as He called Jimmy and it pleased Him to use me, as He did Jimmy, in the years which followed.  Jimmy and I were “the foolish things… the weak things… and the base things” of 1 Corinthians 1:26-29, but He chose us in our weakness so that He could glorify Himself through us. I GIVE HIM ALL THE GLORY.

God is not looking for clever people who know everything and can do everything. He is looking for those who are humble, obedient and willing to learn. When He calls people like this into His service He uses them, despite their shortcomings, and the result is that He receives the glory and not them.

Is God calling you into a ministry to children or into any other ministry. Do not allow your nervousness, your lack of training, experience or ability  hold you back from obeying God and His call. If God has called you He will be responsible for you;  He will equip you, bless you and use you as you move forward, step by step, in His will.  He will enable you to do what you cannot do, and in doing so all the glory will go to Him.

“  …..THAT NO FLESH SHOULD GLORY IN HIS PRESENCE.” (1 Corinthians 1:29)