October, with the cooler air and beautiful fall foliage our Creator designed, is here! With school in full swing, it’s assumable we’re all involved in various activities: school clubs, community service groups, after-school jobs, sports, church retreats, and maybe some college classes—not to mention being with family and friends! But let’s stop and take a few minutes to ponder on our theme for this month: “Pierce my heart to spread Your Word.” “But as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, even so we speak, not as pleasing men, but God who tests our hearts.” – I Thessalonians 2:4. Amid all the activities we fill our schedules with, do we realize that none of these compare with the great duty that God has entrusted us with?
Entrusted with the Gospel
What does it mean to be “entrusted with the gospel”? If someone entrusts you with something, they have trust and confidence in you, that you will take full responsibility of that thing, and whole-heartedly carry out your duty. Wow! God—the Creator of the world and the Almighty Father—entrusts us with the gospel! What a privilege! But do we know what the gospel is? Gospel means “good news.” What is the good news? Let’s read what Paul wrote in his first letter to the Corinthians, chapter 15, verses 1-4: “Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.” What great and glorious news! This is what we need to share with others. When we develop close friendships with people and get to know them, it is easier for us to be open and honest about the gospel. God entrusts us to share the good news that we who are Christians joyfully revolve our lives around. Will we let Him down, or fulfill our duty for the One who gave it ALL for us?
What Holds Us Back
Before we begin to share God’s Word with others, we need a clear view of some of the things that hurt our ability to spread His Word, and what we need to know to get past them!
We are afraid to lose friends.
Do you think you’ll lose friends if you spread the gospel instead of gossip? Even if you do, you know that (1) those aren’t really the best friends you have, and (2) “all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28). Job said in Job 19:19, “All my close friends abhor me, And those whom I love have turned against me.” But how did things turn out in the end for Job? “And the LORD restored Job’s losses when he prayed for his friends. Indeed the LORD gave Job twice as much as he had before” (Job 42:10). Even though Job went through more loss than most of us will, we still feel hurt when our friends desert us. Pray for the people in your life, and also pray for the courage to tell them about our Father and our Savior! Truly know that “if God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31).
We’re girls.
As sad as it is, there are those of us who may tell ourselves that we are justified in not spreading His Word because we’re female! First Timothy 2:12 says, “And I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man…” but it does not say “don’t tell others about His Word because you’re a woman”! In Acts 18:24-26, we read about a man who needed a little guidance in his teachings of the Lord. Aquila and his wife, Priscilla—a woman—talked with him privately, to explain and help him understand. In Acts 9:36, we’re told of Tabitha (Dorcas), who “was full of good works and charitable deeds.” (Don’t forget that our good works speak also, glorifying God! – Matthew 5:16.) God provides numerous ways we as ladies can spread His Word and set a Christian example: we can teach children’s or ladies’ Bible classes, care for others by cooking and cleaning, take a humble stand against immoral activities, dress modestly to show that we respect our Christian brothers and the bodies God gave us…and the list goes on. Get creative in spreading His Word, too: make cards to send in the mail with Scriptures on the front, decorate binders for school with photos from church activities and your favorite verses or spiritual reminders, have a sleepover with a good friend, make snacks together and talk with her one-on-one about her beliefs, offering Scriptural guidance in love!
Check back soon for part two.
By Hannah Smith
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