What Are You Learning?

Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship.
Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

The day 3 devotional from Dr. Cooper’s book tells the story of Telemachus, a fourth century Christian and it is a story that I had never heard before, yet it echoed perfectly the lessons the Lord has been teaching me through Romans 12: 1-2. Allow me to quote the story from Dr. Cooper’s book:”Telemachus lived in a remote village and spent much of his time in prayer. One day he heard the voice of God telling him to go to Rome, so he obeyed. Weeks later, he arrived in the city at the time of a great celebration. The monk followed the crowd down the streets into the Coliseum. He saw gladiators stand before the emperor and say, ‘We who are about to die salute you.’ When he realized these men were going out to fight to the death for the entertainment of the crowd, he cried out, ‘In the name of Jesus, stop!'”

“As the games began, he pushed his way through the crowd, climbed over the wall, and jumped to the floor of the arena. When the crowd saw him running toward the gladiators and saying, ‘In the name of Jesus, stop!’ they thought it was part of the show and began laughing.”

“When they realized it wasn’t, the laughter turned to anger. As he pleaded with the gladiators to stop, one of them plunged a sword into his body. As he was dying, he cried, ‘In the name of Jesus, stop!'”

“Then a strange thing happened. The gladiators gazed at his lifeless body. A hush fell over the crowd. Way up in the upper rows, a man stood and made his way to the exit. Others began to follow, until everyone left the Coliseum in silence.”

“The year was A.D. 391. That was the last battle to the death between gladiators in the Coliseum. All because of one voice that could hardly be heard above the tumult.”

“One voice–one life–that spoke the truth in God’s name.”

That story touched my heart deeply and reminded me that although I am only one, with my body, heart and soul completely offered to God as a living sacrifice, I can make a difference in the lives of others, perhaps for generations. I must stay faithful to the last word I heard from God and be obedient to His call!!