Eestlane Olen

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fe-dxVMoMB8

Eestlane olen ja eestlaseks jään,
kui mind eestlaseks loodi.
Eestlane olla on uhke ja hää
vabalt vaarisa moodi.

This song keeps going through my mind: "I am an Estonian and an Estonian I will stay."

The best part of this video is the final minute, in Raekoja Plats -- the Time of Awakening.

Evelyn

Head Iseseisvuspäeva!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estonian_90th_Anniversary_celebration_festival

http://www.eesti90.ee/

The Singing Revolution

The Singing Revolution a film which has been playing to rave reviews in the US and Canada is playing in Tallinn at Kino Sõprus (in same building as Club Hollywood in the Old Town)

Feb 22 at 17:30
Feb 23 at 11:00 and 17:30
Feb 24 at 11:00 and 17:30

For more information see: http://www.singingrevolution.com/

Tallinn, Estonia

Tallinn, Estonia

Ancient town walls, old churches, graceful steeples, twisty cobblestone streets, red-tiled roofs, and imposing towers reveal German, Swedish, and Russian architectural influences.

The skyline includes St. Olav's Church, which with its steeple was once the tallest building in the world.

Tallinn, capital of the independent republic of Estonia, was one of the largest cities in Europe in the Middle Ages and a key trading city of the Hanseatic League. The exceptionally well-preserved Old Town has earned Tallinn a place on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Today, Tallinn is home to almost a third of Estonia's population.

The fortress on Castle Hill and many ancient protective bastions stand as a historical tribute to a time, in the 15th century, when Tallinn was heavily fortified.

a vision

I woke up in the middle of the night last night, and couldn't go back to sleep. So I prayed. I asked God to take the me-that-is-really-me in His hands. I pictured Jesus holding my heart in His hands, one cupped over the other, completely covering it. Then something surprising happened! It was as if my heart were a seed, which began sprouting! I was actually afraid to see what would happen, because I knew that once this plant really began to grow, there would be no more "seed" left! But I was also curious to see what kind of flower would bloom!

This morning I thought of this Scripture passage:
JN 12:24 I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. 25 The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.

If a seed sits on the tabletop, nothing will happen to it. But if it is buried in the soil, and has water and sunshine, it will grow!

I feel that God wants to make a dramatic change in my life, completely transform me from a "seed" to ... something else! I don't know what! Please pray for me.

Evelyn

Psalm 81

Take up the song, sound the timbrel ... sound the trumpet....

Sing for joy to God our strength;
shout aloud to the God of Jacob!
Begin the music, strike the tambourine....

Jaak

Jaak ("J" is pronounced like a "Y") is a man who has been coming to our corps pretty regularly for the last few weeks. He says that he was just drawn to come!

He always sits in the very front (on the door side, not the piano side, if you know our chapel) and often asks to say just "two words" which ends up being a long, rambling speech that even the Estonians can't understand.

Gradually we came to realize that this isn't just because he wants to be annoying, but he seems to have some real mental health issues. He says he's not homeless, and he seems to be okay physically over all.

He reminds us so much of Jerry from the Chester Corps!

He's been a real test of my patience and love, and it can be hard when we're having prayer time and he decides to stand up and give one of his speeches! It also makes us reluctant to have open testimony time.

Please pray that he will get whatever mental-health assistance he needs (Inge referred him to a place), and especially that all of us will see him as a child of God. It can be a real challenge to have an open-door policy when there are people like this around! Please pray that we will remember that these interruptions ARE our work; it's not that our more important work is being interrupted! (David Dean used to always say that when he was CO in Portland.)

Thanks for your prayers, friends!

Evelyn

Armida and Inge, two Salvation Army social workers

Captain Armida LaMarr quotes the following in her prayer e-mail: "social work is ministry and ministry is social work. When I look at you and what you do, it stirs something in my soul. When I finish school, do you think I could be an officer, so that I can combine social work and ministry in my work?"

Armida is a sessionmate and we were sent out as cadet-lieutenants together. She was our session chaplain and we had some good times together in the SFOT prayer room! Now she is the Director of Social Services for the SA in Kenya.

Inge Ojala was enrolled as a soldier one year ago yesterday! She has done social work in Estonia for many years, and is currently the director of the SA's Lootusemaja (Hope House) homeless day center and Tagasi Tööle (Back to Work) program. We also just asked her to be our the Recruiting Sergeant at our corps!

Please pray for both of these precious women today!

Evelyn

10th doctrine (1 Thessalonians 5:16-24)

We believe that it is the privilege of all believers....

1TH 5:16 Be joyful always; 17 pray continually; 18 give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.
1TH 5:19 Do not put out the Spirit's fire; 20 do not treat prophecies with contempt. 21 Test everything. Hold on to the good. 22 Avoid every kind of evil.
1TH 5:23 May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it.

Same verses in Estonian language....

16Rõõmustage alati,
17palvetage lakkamatult,
18tänage kõige eest - sest see on, mida Jumal teilt tahab JeesusesKristuses!
19Ärge kustutage Vaimu,
20ärge põlastage prohvetiandi,
21katsuge läbi kõik, pidage kinni heast,
22hoiduge igasuguse kurja eest!
Lõputervitused
23Aga rahu Jumal ise pühitsegu teid läbinisti ning teie vaim ja hing ja ihu olgu tervikuna hoitud laitmatuna meie Issanda Jeesuse Kristuse tulemiseks!24Ustav on see, kes teid kutsub; küll tema teebki seda.

we believe

John Stott doesn't believe in hell.

Now N.T. Wright doesn't believe in heaven.

But:
We believe in the immortality of the soul, the resurrection of the body, in the general judgement at the end of the world, in the eternal happiness of the righteous, and in the endless punishment of the wicked.

The apparent ease with which so much of Protestant Christianity departs from historic Christian orthodoxy truly terrifies me, and is a horrible witness to the world as well.

Evelyn

a prayer for the Creator to protect Estonia

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_epUNDItzfk

Looja, hoia Maarjamaad
ja andesta meile me vead.
Looja, kaitse Eestimaad,
peod selleks palveks nüüd sean.

Looja, hoia hiiepuid,
sest ladvad neil längus on maas,
Looja, kaitse kodutuid,
kord nad ehk tulevad taas.

Kirjas on Aegade Raamatus,
õndsad on need, kes ei näe,
uskudes on see on saamatus,
kui keegi läeb.

Looja, hoia Maarjamaad,
Looja loodab, sest teab.
Milleks need ladvad on kaarjamad,
peod, mille palveks ma sean...

Et Looja, hoiaks Maarjamaad
http://www.lap.ttu.ee/~muhw/lyrics.php?action=show&id=96797

"Looja, hoia Maarjamaad" ehk "Palve" sündis 1987. aastal.Tõnis Mägi on meenutanud: "Meil oli Ultima Thulega Linnahallis kontsert ja mul tuli äkki idee, et peaks kontserdi lõppu just selle loo panema. Rääkisin sellest bändile ja poisid ütlesid, et Mäks, ära seda küll tee, tuleb mingi jama!Ikkagi esitasime selle loo ära. Meid haaras nagu mingi üle-mõistuse-tunne, kui siis äkki kõik need neli tuhat inimest saalis püsti tõusid. See elamus lõi minu jaoks nagu kogu olemise platsil puhtaks, ma oleksin kasvõi tankide vastu muusikaga läinud!"
http://t-spark.blogspot.com/2007/05/ajalugu-tehtud.html

choose life

http://www.gailmcwilliams.com/media/video/familystory.html

"They Need Christ" in Estonian

Maa peal valu inimesed tunnevad,
vaja Kristust ja Sind ja ka mind.
Mahajäetud lapsed nutmas maailmas,
vaja Kristust ja Sind ja ka mind.
Ja neil kannatused ikka kestavad,
surm ja meeleheide kõikjal levivad.
Nende nutt ei lõppe, kui ei hooli me,
vaja Kristust ja Sind ja ka mind.

Väsin'd inimlapsed surma otsivad,
vaja Kristust ja Sind ja ka mind.
Kaarega neist ligimesed mööduvad,
vaja Kristust ja Sind ja ka mind.
Neile keegi kunagi ei helista,
külmas, näljas inimesed üksinda.
Vabasurmad, mille põhjus teadmata,
vaja Kristust ja Sind ja ka mind.

Ärajooksnud pelgupaika vajavad,
vaja Kristust ja Sind ja ka mind.
Alkohoolikud, kes ikka veel ei tea:
vaja Kristust ja Sind ja ka mind.
Kaotan'd tee on jumalatud silme eest
ja neil armastust on vaja Jeesuses.
Kui me silmad sulgeme, nad lahkuvad
sinuta, minuta, Loojata.

words by General John Gowans
translated by Kulla-Siiri Sassian

They Need Christ! (don't we all!)

Many thanks to John for sending me this music!

On 29 Jan. I wrote:
"They Need Christ" was published in The Musical Salvationist Oct 1988, Vol 102-P4
Would it be possible for anyone to send us this music, PLEASE?

I got this music, and also a band piece, in the mail the day before yesterday! HURRAY!

Thanks again, John!

Evelyn

P.S.
Someone said at the corps (I think one of the teenager brothers, either Eero or Vesse), "They need Christ? So do I!" :-)

my home corps

my first time speaking in Estonian in public, almost 6 months ago

Here's a very funny series of pictures from 29 August 2007 at the Võru Corps in southern Estonia. You can see Andrus translating for Tim, as usual. Then you see me sending Andrus away, as I made the totally unexpected, and perhaps foolish, decision to speak in Estonian for the first time from the pulpit.

As of 1 January, I've been speaking only in Estonian while at the corps. I really thought yesterday's sermon was particularly bad! But I'm also realizing that it's the lives we live together, and not so much the lecture we give for 10 minutes on Sunday morning, that really makes a difference in someone's life.

Of course, that's no excuse for my laziness in studying and practicing, so please pray that I will be more vigilant in this regard!

Evelyn

correction

I just noticed that I made a mistake on my post of 6 Feb. -- I forgot to post the link!

"We are doing this as a family, which is also very cool! We just printed out the paper itself and will color in one square each day of Lent."
http://www.domestic-church.com/CONTENT.DCC/19990301/FRIDGE/readings.htm

This has been a really nice thing for us to do together as a family, not too long for 4-year-old Peter. We light a candle, do the reading, and pray.

Evelyn

SASB 512 in Estonian (and English!)

MU ELU KRISTUSE MURTUD LEIB.
MU ARMASTUS VALATUD VEIN.
ÜKS TÄIDETUD KARIKAS JA LAUD,
MIS KAETUD TA NIME ALLA,
ET TEISED HINGED SAAKS TOIDETUD,
MU LÄBI SAAKS OSA TA ELUST.

KÕIK, MIS MUL ON, SEE MEISTRI KÄES,
ET ÕNNISTAKS, MURRAKS SEDA.
SEAL TEISPOOL OJA VIINAPRESS,
SEALT LEIAN MA OMA TEE,
SEE KINDEL:
KÕIK, MIS ARMASTUS NÕUAB,
MA ANNAN,TA NIME PÄRAST.

LAS JAGAN MA,ISSAND, ARMU,
MIS VIINAPUUD TOITNUD ON
JA JÕUDU ON ANDNUD
SEE TERALE MULLAS.
KES SUREB KOOS SINUGA, OO, SÕNA,
TA TÕUSEB JA ELAB TAAS.

My life must be Christ's broken bread,
My love his outpoured wine,
A cup o'erfilled, a table spread
Beneath his name and sign.
That other souls, refreshed and fed,
May share his life through mine.

My all is in the Master's hands
For him to bless and break;
Beyond the brook his winepress stands
And thence my way I take,
Resolved the whole of love's demands
To give, for his dear sake.

Lord, let me share that grace of thine
Wherewith thou didst sustain
The burden of the fruitful vine,
The gift of buried grain.
Who dies with thee, O Word divine,
Shall rise and live again.

Albert Orsborn (1886-1967)

Examination of Conscience

Did I deny or doubt God’s existence?
Did I refuse to believe God’s revelation?
Have I gone to a fortune teller, used good luck charms or practiced any other form of the Occult?
Did I despair of or presume on God’s mercy?
Did I neglect prayer for a long time?
Did I blaspheme God or take God’s name in vain, curse or break an oath or vow?
Did I do unnecessary physical work on Sunday?
Did I disobey or disrespect my parents or legitimate superior?
Did I neglect my duties to my husband, wife, children or parents?
Did I fail to actively take an interest in the religious education and formation of my children?
Did I give a full day’s work in return for my full day’s pay?
Did I give a fair wage to my employee?
Did I give scandal by what I said or did, especially to the young?
Was I the cause of anyone leaving the Faith?
Was I impatient, angry, envious, unkind, proud, jealous, revengeful, hateful toward others, lazy?
Did I give bad example, abuse drugs, drink alcohol to excess, fight or quarrel?
Did I physically injure or kill anyone?
Have or advise for an abortion?
Did I participate in or approve of the grave evil known as “mercy killing?”
Did I attempt suicide?
Did I willfully entertain impure thoughts and desires?
Did I dress immodestly?
Did I use impure or suggestive words?
Tell impure stories?
Or listen to them?
Did I deliberately look at impure things, TV, videos, plays, pictures or movies?
Or deliberately read impure material?
Did I commit an impure act by myself or with another?
Did I abuse my marriage rights?
Was I unfaithful to my marriage vows?
Have I kept company with someone else’s spouse?
Did I steal, cheat, help or encourage others to steal, or keep stolen goods?
Have I made restitution for stolen goods?
Did I fulfill my contracts, give or accept bribes, pay my bills, rashly gamble or speculate, deprive my family of necessities of life?
Did I tell lies?
Deliberately to deceive?
Or injure others by lies?
Did I commit perjury?
Was I uncharitable in word or deed, gossip or reveal others’ faults and sins?
Fail to keep secrets I should have?

Crossbearers (SFOT 2000-2002)

"The passion story becomes a road map for all of Jesus' followers (who deny themselves and take up their crosses) whether Christians martyred in the first, or Christians bold in the [twenty-first], centuries.... In suffering is he revealed! In the experience of our own crosses is he made manifest.... 'Jesus has many who love His Kingdom in Heaven,' writes Thomas à Kempis in The Imitation of Christ, 'but few who bear His Cross. Many follow Jesus to the Breaking of the Bread, but few to the drinking of the Cup of His Passion. They who love Jesus for His own sake, and not for the sake of comfort for themselves, bless Him in every trial and anguish of heart, no less than in the greatest joy.' Be cross-bearers, then. These are the true followers."

from Reliving the Passion
by Walter Wangerin, Jr.

Prayer

"Whatever we are engaged in, whether it is care for the poor, or some other duty, or some act of generosity, we should remember God and long for God."

"Prayer is the light of the soul, true knowledge of God, a mediator between God and men. Prayer lifts the soul into the heavens where it hugs God in an indescribable embrace. The soul seeks the milk of God like a baby crying for the breast."

"Prayer is a go-between linking us to God. It gives joy to the soul and calms its emotions. I warn you, though: do not imagine that prayer is simply words. Prayer is the desire for God, an indescribable devotion, not given by man but brought about by God’s grace. As St Paul says: For when we cannot choose words in order to pray properly, the Spirit himself intercedes on our behalf in a way that could never be put into words."

http://www.universalis.com/readings.htm

Holy

"Holy, holy, holy
is the Lord God Almighty,
who was, and is, and is to come." (Revelation 4:8)

"Püha, püha, püha on Issand Jumal, Kõigeväeline,
kes oli ja kes on ja kes tuleb!" (Johannese ilmutus 4:8)

"the Lenten fast ... may be fulfilled ... by the renunciation of sin"

"whatever degree of progress has been made there is no one who should not be more advanced. All must therefore strive to ensure that on the day of redemption no one may be found in the sins of his former life.
Dear friends, what the Christian should be doing at all times should be done now with greater care and devotion, so that the Lenten fast enjoined by the apostles may be fulfilled, not simply by abstinence from food but above all by the renunciation of sin."

from a sermon by Saint Leo the Great, pope

"we begin our service in Christ's army with this holy fast"

"Lord, we begin our service in Christ’s army with this holy fast.
We shall be fighting spiritual evils,
so we must arm ourselves with bodily discipline.

Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God for ever and ever.

Amen."

Keeping a Holy Lent

http://www.universalis.com/n-download-pc.htm

A trial version can be downloaded here, which is VERY cool! :-)

We are doing this as a family, which is also very cool! We just printed out the paper itself and will color in one square each day of Lent.

Tonight we prayed for Elle Soom.

Ash Wed. -- beginning of Lent

This morning we spent some time in prayer with our brothers and fellow pastors. I hope you will have the opportunity for ecumenical fellowship during this Lenten season!

Some more on Lent:

http://www.upperroom.org/methodx/thelife/articles/lent101.asp

http://www.upperroom.org/pockets/childrenspirituality.asp?ArticleID=132391

http://www.upperroom.org/devotional/lent/

The Prayer Room at our corps will be open every day during Lent. Thank you for praying for us, even when we are separated geographically.

Evelyn

more Lent (are you ready?)

http://www.jimmyakin.org/2005/02/annual_lent_fig.html

http://www.catholic-pages.com/dir/lent.asp

http://fisheaters.com/meditationondeath.doc

Lent ... again (starts tomorrow!) -- see earlier posts below

http://www.christianitytoday.com/leaders/newsletter/2001/cln10404.html

http://www.christianitytoday.com/cpt/9g2/9g2031.html

http://www.christianitytoday.com/history/newsletter/easter/lent.html

http://www.christianitytoday.com/history/newsletter/2001/mar02.html

http://www.christianitytoday.com/le/2007/001/5.72.html

http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2000/marchweb-only/34.0.html

http://www.ctlibrary.com/ct/2004/february/24.73.html

http://www.christianitytoday.com/childrensministry/articles/springcleaning.html

Combat Sex Trafficking

http://www.christianitytoday.com/tcw/cause

please continue to pray for Tajikistan!

http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7009903083

ideas for Lent

Feb. 6: Take 30 minutes to pray, ask the Holy Spirit’s guidance, look over this list, and make a few practical Lenten resolutions. Be careful. If you try to do too much, you may not succeed in anything. If you need to get up early or stay up late to get the 30 minutes of quiet, do it. Turn off your phone and computer. Don’t put it off and don’t allow interruptions.

Feb. 7: Get up earlier than anyone else in your house. Spend the first 15 minutes of the day thanking God for the gift of life. Offer your day to Him.

Feb. 9: Thank Him for laying his life down for you.

Feb. 13: Make a good examination of conscience.

Feb. 15: Make a decision to read at least some Scripture every day.

Feb. 18: Pray the liturgy of the hours. You can get it day by day online for free at http://www.universalis.com/.

Feb. 19: Get to know the Fathers of the Church and read selections from them along with Scripture.

Feb. 20: Make the Stations of the Cross each Friday either with a group or by yourself. If you have kids, bring them.

Feb. 25: Make it a habit to stop at least five times a day, raise your heart and mind to God, and say a short prayer such as “Jesus, I love you,” or “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”

Feb. 29: Pray for the millions of Christians suffering under persecution in various Muslim and Communist countries around the world such as the Sudan, Pakistan, Indonesia, China, Viet Nam, and North Korea.

March 1: Pray for Christian unity.

March 3: Pray for the evangelization of all those who have not yet heard and accepted the Good News about Jesus.

March 4: Pray for your enemies. In fact, think of the person who has most hurt you or who most annoys you and spend several minutes each day thanking God for that person and asking God to bless him or her.

March 5: Pray for an end to abortion. Pray for all pregnant women.

March 6: Pray for a just peace in Iraq, Afghanistan, the Holy Land and elsewhere. Pray for those in harm’s way.

March 7: Pray for an end to capital punishment. Pray for those on death row, and for the families of murder victims.

March 8: Find a form of fasting that is appropriate for you, given your age, state of health, and state of life. Some fast on bread and water on Wednesdays and Fridays. Some fast from sweets or alcohol throughout Lent. Some fast on one or more days per week from breakfast all the way to dinner, spending lunch hour in prayer. Some cut out all snacks between meals. The money saved from not buying various things should be given to a ministry serving the physically or spiritually poor.

March 10: Prayer is like breathing – you have to do it continually. But sometimes you need to pause and take a very deep breath. That’s what a retreat is. Plan a retreat this Lent. It could be simply a half day, out in nature, or in a Church. Or it could be a full day. Or an overnight. You can certainly read lots of things during your retreat or listen to lots of talks. But try sticking to Scripture, and quiet as much as you can. During or at the end of the retreat, write down what the Holy Spirit seems to be saying.

March 11: Find a written biography of a Saint that particularly appeals to you, and read it during Lent.

March 12: Instead of secular videos for weekend entertainment, try some videos that will enrich your spiritual life. Suggestions: Jesus of Nazareth, by Franco Zeffirelli, The Scarlet and the Black, the Assisi Underground.

March 13: While driving, turn off the secular radio for awhile and use commute time to listen to some teaching on audiocassette or CD.

March 14: Find a local homeless shelter, soup kitchen, or crisis pregnancy center, and volunteer some time there throughout Lent. Serve the people there with the understanding that in so doing, you are serving Jesus. Try to see Jesus in each person there.

March 15: Visit someone at a nursing home or in the hospital or sick at home. Again, love Jesus in and through the suffering person.

March 17: Is there a widow or divorced person living in your neighborhood? If so, invite that person to your home for dinner, coffee, etc.

March 18: View Mel Gibson’s movie The Passion of the Christ during Lent on VHS or DVD, if you feel you can handle the violence.

March 19: Invite folks to view The Passion of the Christ with you, especially people whose faith is rather nominal, or who do not practice their faith, or who do not profess Christian faith at all.

March 20: Spend some focused time with your spouse, strengthening your marriage. Start praying together, or make praying together a more frequent occurrence.

March 21: Spend some focused time together with each of your children. Listen. Pray. Maybe even have fun.

http://www.crossroadsinitiative.com/library_category/3/Lent_and_Holy_Week.html

Lent begins next week!

We've had some interesting discussions in our family on the reason some people give up something for Lent. Is it mainly to deny ourselves, to remind us of Christ's sacrifice for us (though of course ours are so small and petty in comparison to His!)? Is it to save money to give to World Services (Self Denial)? Is it to save time to spend in prayer? It is an act of piety? What do you think?
Evelyn

"The Original Meaning of Lent"
by: Dr. Marcellino D'Ambrosio

Lent's a time of introspection. We read Exodus, and watch the Israelites grumbling, even after the amazing things God had done for them (Ex 17:3-7). In them, we recognize ourselves. For many of us, then, Lent is time for the spiritual equivalent of New Year's resolutions. We set aside time to work on ourselves for forty days so we don't end up wandering around in the wilderness for 40 years. We do things to burn off the fat that's weighing us down, try to improve our spiritual diet, and do some spiritual exercises to strengthen the muscles we call "virtues"....

In the days of the Church Fathers, did the whole Church fast, pray, and give alms for the forty days preceding Easter? Absolutely. But [they] did this primarily for the sake of others.... These folks were praying and fasting during the season of Lent to break the power of darkness and prepare themselves tocross the Jordan into the Promised Land.

We ought to recover this ancient tradition and do penance for and with those who will enter or return to the Church at Easter. But there is something else that we should do. There are millions more who should be returning or entering. We need to tell them about Jesus.

"Evangelism? That's not my charism, not my personality." "I need more education, first." "I evangelize by example." But [we] are called to evangelize in both deed and word.

True, not everyone ... can manage to get a degree intheology. But the story of the Samaritan woman (Jn 4) teaches the kind of evangelism that all of us can manage.

First, Jesus models it for us. He comes to a town where everyone is a member of a heretical sect and sits down by awell. A woman comes to draw water. Israelites usually don't talk to Samaritans, much less drink out of their ritually impurevessels. To boot, men usually don't make conversation withwomen. But Jesus recognizes her existence and affirms herby being willing to accept a drink from her. Once she gets overher shock, a dialogue ensues. It starts out about water, wells, Jews and Samaritans, but Jesus asks her questions that throw her off a bit and make her think. He finally asks a question that leads her to "fess up" and admit her need. She's hungry for love, and has run through quite a few partners looking for the real thing. Jesus' soul-piercing glance tells her that his is the love she's been looking for. She abandons her water jar and returns to city to tell everyone about Jesus.

Did she wait till she had a Masters in Theology? Did she sit down with people and demonstrate from Scripture why he was the Messiah? No. She simply told people, with joy, confidence, and conviction, what Jesus had done for her. And she invited people to come and experience Him for themselves.

And that's how a large portion of that heretical town came to believe. And that's how a large portion of the Roman Empire came to believe. There were no crusades in stadiums, no TV preachers. Christians simply listened to neighbors and coworkerswith respect and love, asked questions to find out their needs, and shared how Jesus had met similar needs in their lives. And then an invitation was issued to come check it out.

One of our Lenten resolutions this year ought to be to get over our fear of evangelizing, to be aware of the spiritual needs of those around us, and share His love. More people are looking than you think. "The fields are ripe for harvest" (Jn 4:35).

http://www.crossroadsinitiative.com/pics/Original_Meaning_of_Lent.pdf