You are not your own; you were bought at a price. 1 Cor. 6:19-20.
A while back I used to meet at a local coffee shop with a group of men from First Baptist Church. We’d spend about an hour and a half studying, praying for needs, challenging each other in our relationship with Christ and generally drinking too much coffee. It is one of the highlights of my week.
One morning as we were studying Crazy Love by Francis Chan, someone asked if we knew anyone who was totally in love with God. You know, a completely sold-out, every fiber of their being doing little more than living, breathing, talking, thinking about and obeying Christ.
We all got silent for a few moments while we racked our brains trying to think of someone we knew who was totally and completely sold out and in love with God. As the silence lingered, I thought it rather humorous that none of us at the meeting thought anyone at the table fit that description. Even the two pastors who were there, yours truly being one of them, weren’t named by anyone else in the group as being totally in love with Christ. Well, that was humbling!
The first person who came to my mind was Mark Buntain, who visited my Bible college in the early 80’s. A missionary to India, Mark founded Calcutta Mercy Ministries, which reaches the poorest in India through schools, a homeless shelter, a church, massive feeding programs, an orphanage and a large church. I remember hearing him teach in the chapel, and I was struck with his sincerity, complete humility, and absolute dedication to the work Christ called him to. When he finished speaking, instead of coming down front and meeting the students like every other every other speaker did, listening to their compliments and signing autographs, Mark turned around and dropped to his knees at the choir pew and engaged in prayer. That image is still burned in my mind. Continue Reading