I really sensed in my spirit a compulsion to get in my truck. I questioned, “Lord, why get in my truck? It’s early in the morning. I have nowhere to go.” I then felt he was saying, “Just trust me. Trust me.”
“Lord, where?”
“Drive south.”
I drove south towards a little town called Fortine, Montana. “Lord, am I supposed to go into Fortine?” He said, “No keep going.” I drove a little further south toward a town called Trigo, Montana. At Trigo he said, “Turn, go into town.” As I drove into town I said , “OK, what am I supposed to do?” He said, “Keep driving.”
I drove up a gravel road asking, “What am I doing Lord.”
“Just pay attention.”
Continuing to drive I heard him say, “Take a left hand turn up this road.” It was more like a trail than a road. The road was so rough I had to put my truck into 4 wheel drive to drive up it. Still driving and wondering I thought, “Well, Lord, if nothing else you're showing me your grandiose mountainous beauty.”
As I rounded a corner I stopped when I saw what I can best describe as an old shack. It couldn’t have been any larger than 400 square feet. There was an old car sitting in front beside an old dilapidated garage.
I thought, “I need to find out where I am.”
I Got out of my truck and walked towards the shack. As I stepped up to the door it opened about an inch, and a double barrel shotgun stuck out of the door. At about that time I wondered if God knew what he was doing. I said, “Sir, it’s obvious that I’m lost. I believe you know how to help me get out of here.”
“You with the government?”
“No, Sir.”
“Why are you driving a new truck?” (In that part of the country only the government employees drove new trucks.)
“No. I’m a pastor.”
“Where?”
“I pastor the big log church in the valley, on the left going into Eureka.”
“Really?
“Yes.”
He answered, “Come in here. I have some questions.”
After some introductions and sincere questions I said, “Bob, truthfully, I didn’t get lost just to get lost. I really feel the Lord led me here to speak to you this day.” He confirmed that, saying, “I have been crying out to God, asking him for answers, but I never dreamed he would send somebody up to my place to talk to me.” That began an entire day of ministering the Word of truth to, not only Bob, but his wife, Bonnie, his son, Jim Bob, and their daughter, Becky.
As the day unfolded I found that inside that little shack were four people scared to death to go outside and leave their home because they had been tormented by a neighbor that would fire rounds of live ammunition at the top of their house and sometimes through the rooftop for the sole purpose of intimidation.
Bob began to tell me about how their neighbor had burnt their home down. That’s why they were living in the shack. Truth is, he assumed the neighbor had burnt the house down, although no one is certain. Bob was afraid. His kids were afraid. The entire family was afraid. He asked me, “Do you think there is really a God that can protect me?” I said, “I not only believe there is a God that can protect you. I believe there is a God that can give you eternal life.” He said, “Ok, tell me about that.”
As the morning unfolded and we drank very dark, black coffee together I talked to them about Jesus Christ. Bob prayed that morning. There was a freedom that came across his countenance that was amazing. Then Bonnie, his wife, said, “Well, I want to get saved too.” I led her in prayer as she received Christ as her savior. And then the two kids, one about sixteen and the other thirteen or fourteen, both wanted to experience Christ and get saved.
Because I chose to listen to God in an early morning prayer I was privileged to, not only lead them to the Lord Jesus Christ but to also become their pastor.
It always sounds interesting when somebody says. “God told me.” It always leads to that question, “How do you know it was God? Maybe it was just voices in your head or maybe it was just your intuition.” I agree. There are times when “that thought” that runs through our head is just intuition. But God created us to have intuition.
I don’t remember what I had read in God’s Word that morning. As was my practice, I know that I had taken a prayer walk on a prayer trail on the eighty plus acres of forested land that we lived on. As I walked I listened.
I believe that learning to hear the voice of God is about training our spiritual ear to hear. The scripture says, “Be still and know that I am God.” [Isaiah 46:10] I believe it is saying, “If you’ll quit talking you’ll find out that I am speaking, and you’ll be able to hear me.”
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