Tuesday's Devotion

Tuesday, April 27, 1999

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "See, the home of God is among mortals. He will dwell with them as their God; they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them. (Revelation 21:3 NRSV)

One summer while Max Lucado was in high school he worked laying pipe in a West Texas oil field. At lunch time the workers in the oil field would tell jokes and play cards. "For thirty minutes in the heat of the day," Max says, "the oil patch became Las Vegas--replete with foul language, dirty stories, blackjack, and barstools that doubled as lunch pails."

One day during lunch a supervisor walked toward the workers. Did he have a job for them that couldn't wait? They wondered.

"Uh, fellows," he said.

The workers turned and looked up at him. "I, uh, I just wanted, uh, to invite..." The workers could tell he was uncomfortable with whatever he was trying to tell them. "I just wanted to tell you that," he tried again, "our church is having a service tonight and..."

"What?" Max thought to himself in disbelief. "He's talking church? Out here? With us?"

"I wanted to invite any of you to come along," the supervisor said.

There was a silence among the workers. Several stared at the dirt. Others just looked at each other. No one said anything.

"Well, that's it," he said, "if any of you want to go...let me know." After saying that he left. Max and the other workers began to laugh.

Five years later Max was a college sophomore struggling with a decision. Max admits he drifted from faith. He wanted to know Jesus again. But the price was too high. His friends might laugh. That's when he thought of the supervisor in the oil field. That supervisor's love for God had been greater than his concern for his reputation. "So I came home," says Max.

Prayer: Dear God, bring me home to you today and forever. Amen.

Ronald Newhouse, Texas, USA

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