Would you have ever imagined that God would use a children’s book to turn drug Lords and terrorists into devoted followers of Jesus Christ?
Well, that is exactly what is happening as missionaries use the Spanish translation of RW360’s Young Peacemaker materials to lead Bible studies in a high security prison in South America.
In a marvelous fulfillment of Jesus’ promise in Matthew 18:3 (“Unless you become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven”), God has used our children’s material to bring the gospel to dozens of hardened criminals. I praise God every time I receive a photograph of the latest group of converts, whose shining faces reveal the reality of their new life in Christ.
This is just one of the many ways that God continues to use our resources to resolve conflict and transform lives. In an example closer to home, a man called and told us that his wife had filed for divorce and refused marriage counseling or conciliation. We gave him free access to our two courses on relational wisdom and peacemaking and urged him to ask God to change him so noticeably that his wife would change course. A few weeks later, he sent us this email:
“This morning, my wife, while dropping the kids off for the day, pulled me aside and informed me that she no longer wants to pursue divorce and wishes to move back home this upcoming week. She hugged me. I got to tell her I love her for the first time in a very long time. She reciprocated. I am overwhelmed. I know there is still a long road ahead of healing and adjustment but today I rejoice over God’s faithfulness in our story!
In another recent case, a pastor accepted a call to a rural church that he soon discovered was deeply divided by the actions of a domineering woman who had offended many people. God worked through one of our RW Coaches to help this pastor teach his teetering congregation how to become peacemakers. This soon led the domineering woman to humble herself, publicly confess her wrongs and ask for forgiveness from the entire congregation. Others were inspired to follow her example, which unleashed a wave of forgiveness and reconciliation in the church.
God is spreading this kind of impact beyond the local church through our new Professional and Community Engagement (PACE) Program, through which we are training instructors to take the principles of relational wisdom and peacemaking, and the gospel itself, into businesses, public colleges, government agencies, military bases and other secular venues all around our nation (see dozens of examples here).
All these stories simply prove the validity of an old Gaelic saying, “God strikes straight blows with crooked sticks.”
Even though RW360 is only a small, crooked stick, our mighty God continues to use us as a channel of his wisdom and grace to promote peace, strengthen relationships and spread the gospel around the world.
If you would like to see us expand this type of ministry, I would deeply appreciate it if you would make a generous year-end donation today to enable us to equip more people to be used by God in this kind of life changing service.
- To donate online, please click here.
- If you wish to donate stock, please use this link.
- If donate by mail, please send a check to RW360, 4460 Laredo Place, Billings, MT 59106
May God make you a channel of his peacemaking wisdom and grace into the lives of many people in the coming year!
~ Ken Sande
Permission to distribute: Please feel free to download, print, or electronically share this message in its entirety for non-commercial purposes with as many people as you like.
© 2024 Ken Sande
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