The Promised Advocate : Samuel Chang
Romans 8:26 (ESV)
26 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.
Again and again, my heavenly father reminds me of my incompleteness without Him. How gracious is the father, that in my weakness He strengthens and completes me through Christ Jesus?
Kingdom Series Conference was a life-changing event for me. When it came time to share my testimony on the last day, God revealed and moved me to confess the sexual sins I committed over the past five years. Over that time, I had let the demons taunt me, calling me unworthy of God’s love. What came after this confession was the love of Jesus that poured over me. I was reminded that my heavenly father’s love for me never wavered. He accepted me regardless of all the moments I rebelled against Him.
Unlike the many times, my heavenly father embraced me like the prodigal son, this time was different. He called me to turn away from my sins and to follow Him. So, I did. This gracious, personal love of Jesus that I experienced caused an overflowing out of my heart to pursue His love and will for my life. Following Kingdom Series Conference, my second college semester began. I committed myself to my college campus ministry where I felt I was growing.
Basic Discipleship Training was offered by this ministry and I took a leap of faith and signed up. During these 4-weeks I was taught and equipped in spreading the gospel in the power of the Holy Spirit. One of the many requirements to pass this training was to evangelize to four people through the Four Spiritual Laws booklet (a tool used to spread the gospel). During the 4 weeks, I went out with my staff and fellow trainees to evangelize on campus. It was extremely challenging for me to care for the people I was sharing with. Rather than caring for their hearts, my mind was so focused on completing the assignment (in sharing with 4 people). This was a discouraging season for me, and I asked myself why my heart didn’t truly care for those my father loved.
The weekend following that session of campus evangelism, I attended City-Wide Gethsemane (praise and prayer night). Toward the end of the night, intercessory prayer was held, and we were asked to pair up and to share. The other person was to care for that brother or sister in prayer. Because of how socially awkward I was, I couldn’t find anyone to pair up with. At that moment a brother reached out to me and offered to pray with me, and I said yes. It was hard to share what I wanted to, but I shared with him about the discouragement I felt from my carelessness and selfishness in campus evangelism. When I finished, he asked if he could pray for me, and I said yes.
While he was praying, he paused in the middle of prayer and he started telling me a story. He told me he saw this little child with a toy and his’ father was beside him. The father asked his son, “Go and share that toy with other children. Not because I need you to, but because I want you to experience the joy in sharing with others.” He told me to imagine that this boy was me and the father was God. He told me that the father does not need to use me. Rather he sends us out in His’ love and care for the lost sheep.
In my mind, I initially thought that I didn’t share enough and that my brother couldn’t understand and pray for my heart. But I realized that he was simply the vessel and the Holy Spirit was the one who was working within me. As intercessory prayer wrapped up, I told my brother that the Holy Spirit was the one who interceded in prayer and worked in our hearts. I came to the understanding that we can’t care for one other without the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus is the only one who can truly unite us all. The father who cares for our hearts shares that heart with us through the Holy Spirit. It is not in my strength that I can go out and share the gospel with others. But it is in the love and care of the heavenly father.