We made the split into our 4 small team for an overnight visitation of churches in villages. Each team getting off the jeepney at different moments to go and share the love of God. As we departed, we encouraged one another and cheered for the mission. The scene was a reminder of stories from Acts. As the apostles and followers continued their service in different areas in small groups, so did we.
I (the media guy, Trent) happened to be with Greg, Molly, Lauren, and Kate for this short stay. As soon as we arrived in our designated area, the pastor wanted us to go door to door and evangelize. Vonn, our translator, said the pastor had an incredible passion for door to door evangelism in his area and wanted us to join. So we did.
Our first stop was with a man by the name Nonoy. He was a gentle man, with a white beard and a kind laugh. He was quite interested in our journey here in the Philippines and asked about our purpose. He complimented us for taking interest in his people and thanked us for coming. You could see his thanks in his eyes. Nonoy couldn't believe Americans had come and was perplexed that we were going to stay in some of the most rural tribes. After small talk and breaking the ice, we asked if we could share a bible story with him.
His response wasn't a firm "no," but he used the excuse of his wife not being present and he wanted her to be around when we shared. We agreed not to tell the story...for the moment. We continued sharing about our lives, and soon we started sharing bits and pieces of our testimony. And little did we know, God was ushering us into the door to present the gospel just as we had planned. Soon enough, we asked Nonoy if we could share a bible story, and he agreed without hesitation.
See, a "no" for us may be the end of a moment. It may be what hurts our ministry and turns us away from opening up, but for God it's a time to work miracles. It's a time to test the patience of His people. And it's a time for Him to get the glory and not us.
We all realized what happened. God was in the middle of the entire situation and knew Nonoy needed encouragement and prayer. And here we were to offer the best encouragement. All we had to do was wait and let God turn a "no" into a "yes."
Always wait for God to act, because He will. And it's best in His time.