I have a pastor friend who is hurting. After years of pastoring the same church he was betrayed by a near associate and the church he spent his entire ministry building split leaving him devastated. Within a few months he had a major physical set-back. I spoke with him on Christmas Eve. He is a wounded man.
While we were talking he said something that was especially interesting to me. He said he went to hear John Piper preach and was able to have a personal conversation with him. I have almost all Piper’s books and I often listen to his messages. I said, “You spoke with John Piper, personally?”
“Yes I spoke with him and he prayed for me. When he prayed for me I know that I felt the power of God on that man.”
A surge of spiritual longing went through me that God would make me such a man. I have a new year ahead of me, a time for new resolution. Before I run out of years I would like to learn to be the kind of man who carries with him a sense of the presence of God. When hurting people come my way, and they are everywhere, I want to be able to do more then sympathize with them or give them clever human advice. I would like to have the power of God on my life to help them. I’d like to learn to live in such intimacy and fellowship with God that I am able to usher people into the presence of God in prayer.
That’s what John Piper did for my friend.
Ken Pierpont
Riverfront Character Inn
Flint, Michigan
Christmas night 2005
