Shoot Your Shot!

Acts 26:28

Agrippa interrupted him. “Do you think you can persuade me to become a Christian so quickly?”

D.L. Moody, the greatest evangelist of the 19th Century, by his own admission, made a mistake on October 8, 1871. It was a mistake he determined never to repeat. He had been preaching in the city of Chicago. That particular night drew his largest audience yet. His message was 'What will you do then with Jesus who is called the Christ?'

By the end of the service, he was tired. He concluded his message, and once again presented the true Gospel with a concluding statement; 'Now I give you a week to think that over. When we come together again, you will have an opportunity to respond.' A soloist began to sing. But before the final note, the music was drowned out by clanging bells and wailing sirens screaming through the streets. The Great Chicago fire was blazing.

In the ashen aftermath, more than 300 were dead and over 100.000 homeless. Without a doubt, some who heard Moody's message had died in the fire. He reflected remorsefully that he would never again in his life give an audience another week to think over the message of the Gospel.

King Agrippa asked Paul, “Do you think you can persuade me to become a Christian so quickly?” Maybe not, King Agrippa, but I’m going to shoot my shot. You may choose to believe or not, but I’m going to try.

A lot of Christians are afraid to tell others about their faith in Jesus because they fear rejection or failure. A lady asked me once, “What if I don’t succeed when I share my faith?” I answered her simply, “Yeah, but what if you do?”

To quote hockey hall of famer, Wayne Gretzky, “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” He later added, “Even though there is only a 1-5% chance of scoring.” I’ll take a 1-5% chance of keeping my friends and loved ones out of hell, won’t you? Shoot your shot!

Today’s Readings: Job 17; Acts 24-26

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