I want my edge back. Operating in Boldness for Christ!
I want my edge back. I want that boldness back. As I read familiar passages of scriptures in the book of Acts something has been stirred in me. I remember when I got saved my third year in college. I was an on fire somebody and anyone that was willing to listen, I would tell them about Jesus. I was so focused on leading souls to Christ. Yes I may not have had much wisdom and I still had things I needed to be delivered from but my zeal and love for the Lord and the lost were undeniable. I went when He said to go, I spoke when He told me to speak, and I didn’t rationalize it.
I was crazy enough to believe that I can pray for someone to be filled with the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues once they accepted the Lord, so I shared the little I knew and I prayed and God moved. I was not afraid to get straight to the point and tell you that if you didn’t repent, your sins would lead you straight to hell. I said it without apology. I didn’t look for ways to massage the truth, I spoke it just like it was stated in scripture. So as I am sitting here reading the book of Acts, I ask myself, what happened? How did I become so toned down under the guise of, “Oh I just have more wisdom now?” How did I allow myself to become so silent and lose my passion to see the lost saved? It’s not to say that I haven’t been witnessing, I have… but not with the same intensity. I find that I measure my words carefully to make sure that I don’t offend, I overthink what you think of me when I share the truth. But I want it back Lord. I want you to fill me with your boldness, your passion, I want a heart that beats for the lost. A heart that is willing to turn down my plate, and silence the noise so that I can hear from you. I want to learn to pray unselfish prayers, prayers that are not always about me…but prayers for the lost, for the broken, for the rejected, for the hurt. You know the ones that are in the same shoes that I was before you came and rescued me. Yes I have a husband and six children I have to train. Yes I have new responsibilities and a host of other “excuses” that I didn’t have back then. But my God, you are still God and you still want to see the lost come back to you.
You are still the God that breaks chains! You are still the God who empowers your children to cast out even the most stubborn demons in Jesus’ name. You are still the God who fills people with your Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues! You are still the God that moves mountains because of our fervent prayers. You are still the God who heals the sick and raise the dead! You haven’t changed, but I pray and ask you to change me so that I can lead others to you!
What about you, do you want to become bolder for Christ?
About the Author
Anika Jones
Anika Jones is a speaker and author of the book Lessons Learned Along The Way: A 40 Day Devotional. She blogs about faith and family at LivingForLater.com and posts weekly videos on her YouTube channels, Living For Later (@livingforlater) and Living Life Now (@livinglifenow). Anika loves speaking about developing intimacy with God and understanding who we are in Christ. She serves alongside her husband in ministry. They live in Illinois with their 6 children.