Useful for the Master - Part 7 — Jackie Pullinger

God's Choice of the Unlikely

Singing praises to the Lord, preaching the gospel to young men and women. God has chosen those things to nullify the things that are. And God has chosen the things that are not to nullify the things that are.

Expecting Miracles in Ministry

We have, and of course in the whole story of how God has worked in our lives and how God has always been both on one hand a surprise to me and on the other hand I always expected him to be miraculous.

Remaining When No One Was Changed

I've always expected him to be wonderful, but I am also constantly surprised. But what happened was that after St. Romeo was fully evaporated, people used to say to me, why are you still here? Why are you still here?

Because nobody got saved. Nobody was changed. I was spending my life with this group of triad members, kind of mafia, secret society, in a place called the walled city, which was just a big awful ghetto.

The Hardship of Life in the Walled City

It was without power, electricity, or water. There was about 60 ,000 people living in about five acres. And it was very hard for me to imagine that here, because you've got peels and sheep oil on your face.

And how come the children have to play on concrete roofs? There isn't grass to play on. I think there's a couple of grass football pitches only, but they're reserved for other people. And so the children have to play on concrete roofs.

Continuing Ministry Through Discouragement

Anyway, one day, and he thought that I was crying. I mentioned tears, and I was crying. I had a meeting, and yet one more time, no one had come to it. I was always having meetings by myself. Anyway, I was thinking to myself, well, I don't have to stay here.

I can go somewhere else. I can walk with the Lord. He saw me crying, and he said, Hey, little cow. Why don't you leave? He's a smart guy. He said, too. And, you know, he said, why don't you leave? And he said, oh, God, you've been here four years.

Serving People Who Cheat and Betray

And you've given us rice. And we always say thank you. And you find us places to live. And we mop them up. And you register us in schools, and we earn the gold. And you introduce us to jobs. And we lose them.

We cheat you of money. It's true. Isn't it? They've got to be involved in the ministry of the poor. They've got to be cheated of their money. People say, I once looked and, oh, I got cheated. This is not ministry.

I mean, you don't pick people because the first time you pray for them, they get healed. You don't get cheated. You didn't know in the beginning who was going to betray God and fight. Because they make nice rules.

And it was true. I could see they didn't. I could see how you make them nice rules. I used to write back to them. You said, oh, you're not cool. I actually don't work. And I can't read. You're not cool with them.

Proclaiming God's Love to Sinners

I said, sorry, boy. God loves me anyway. And he loves you. And all the things you've ever done. And nobody would love us like that. Because we cheat and we steal. They actually used to have parties which they invited girls to, young girls of 13 or 14.

Confronting Exploitation With Christ's Sacrificial Love

Some of the parties were also in connection with the police. And then they would seduce the girls and sell them. Because then they were theirs. Into prostitution and live off them. And they didn't think this was very bad.

They just thought it was their right. It's quite a good way for a young man to make money. He said, nobody would love us like that. Nobody would die for us. And I said, I know it's very unfair. That's how Jesus loved me.

And that's why I'm here. And he loves you like that. And it's just as if all the wrong things you've ever done. It's just like the dirty clothes. He is God. He is whole and full and blessed. And this young man was shattered.

A Young Man Encounters Jesus

And he sat there and he prayed. And he began to weep. And he said, Jesus, I don't understand why you would do such a thing for me. That's how he came to know Jesus. And from that time onwards, we learned that if we pray with the people who are seeking to receive the power of the Holy Spirit.

Making the Holy Spirit's Power Available

After all, it's God who is giving away the power to us. And we may as well make it available to people as soon as possible.