On Monday, two teenage girls rescued a man and a toddler who were in danger of drowning off the coast of Aberdeenshire.
The girls, Isla and Eilidh, were on the beach when they heard the toddler crying and saw the man, who had his son on his shoulders, in trouble. The older girl swam out to them on her lilo and helped them to shore, while the younger one went back to get her phone.
In life, some dangers are so clear and apparent that you cannot miss them. And yet, some dangers are unnoticeable and easy to forget, especially when everything seems fine. As Christians we can often see our friends having a good life: it might be their job, their car, money, a lovely family, nice holidays, or maybe all of the above, and we become blinded by society’s definition of ‘safe’ and forget the emergency there is in telling our friends about Jesus. When, in reality, we all need the Saviour.
Right at the beginning of Jesus’ life we are told “a Saviour has been born” (Luke 2:11). Jesus came to save us all from our sin, to wipe our slate clean and present us as holy and blameless so that we too can have an everlasting relationship with God, our wonderful Creator. Jesus, Himself, saw us and our greatest need, leaving His throne in heaven He came to us in the sea of life.
But, He did not only rescue us. We also have the incredible blessing of being God’s vessels through which His good news of salvation in Jesus Christ is shared with the world. In Matthew, we are commanded to “go and make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19 – 20). God invites us into His redemption story, not only as those who are saved, but also as the ones who can join in and share God’s gift of grace with those around us.
Isla and Eilidh saw lives in danger and rushed into action, knowing that their actions could make the difference between life and death. Let us too join in with God’s rescue plan and rush into action to tell our friends about Jesus. Sharing Jesus with our friends and others can be scary, as it requires us to step out in faith and spirit; and it can be all too easy to see our own limitations and weaknesses, or compare our own abilities to those of others.
But fear is not something we should yield to, neither is comparison or dwelling on what we don’t have or can’t do. In this news story, there is more than one hero. Isla swam out on her lilo. Eilidh phoned the coastguard. Keith, a man having a nearby picnic, helped to bring the lilo back to shore. And Sophie, a nurse who happened to be walking by, helped put the dad (who was now unconscious) in the recovery position before the coastguard and the other emergency services turned up.
While this incident could have had a very different ending, and there is no belittling the fear all involved must have felt, it also highlights what can happen when we work together. By joining together we can transform lives. We are the body of Christ, with each of us having our own role to play. Each of us has different God-given gifts, and I encourage us to use and celebrate these gifts in the place and context God has put us, as we look for opportunities to spread the good news of Jesus.
We are people of the evangel – the people of the good news. At the Evangelical Alliance, since 1846, we have been dedicated to equipping our members to live boldly for Jesus. Today, one of the ways we do this is through our online hub greatcommission.co.uk, which is full of hundreds of resources, videos and articles specifically designed to inspire and equip you to share your faith.
We are an alliance of evangelicals who wish to share our faith throughout the UK, in our towns, villages, cities and communities, and we know that as we partner together, we can transform our society in Jesus’ name. Together we can make Jesus known.
So, how will you be brave today? Will you walk into the sea of life and share your faith with your friends?
