Tag Archives: Vietnam

Presidential Prayer Team

Presidential Prayer Team; J.R. – Commitment in Crisis

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For years Tim Lee had been, in his words, running from God. But on an abandoned road in Vietnam one morning, he stepped on a land mine. “My boot landed squarely on what felt like a miniature volcano. A deafening blast rammed through my body…in a weak, barely audible voice I prayed, ‘Oh no! God, not my legs…Lord…please…God get me home to Mom and Dad…I’ll do whatever you want me to do.’”

Then we shall not turn back from you; give us life, and we will call upon your name!

Psalm 80:18

Gravely injured, legs severed and bleeding profusely, Lee would survive – against the odds. And unlike many who utter heavenly commitments in a crisis only to forget them later, he made good on his promise to the Lord. After he returned from Vietnam, Lee surrendered his life to the ministry. Today, he still preaches around the world…from his wheelchair.

“Give us life,” the Psalmist begged God, “and we will call upon your name!” Wherever you’ve been, whatever you’ve done, this day is a one-time gift you have been given and will never have again. May you be a shining testimony to freedom in God as you serve Him and pray for the nation and its leaders.

Recommended Reading: I Timothy 2:1-8

Our Daily Bread

Our Daily Bread — Walking Billboards

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Our Daily Bread

2 Corinthians 5:16-21

We are ambassadors for Christ. —2 Corinthians 5:20

Pete Peterson’s first contact with Vietnam was in the Vietnam War. During a bombing raid in 1966, his plane was shot down and he was taken prisoner. Over 30 years later he returned as US Ambassador to Vietnam. One press article called him “a walking billboard for reconciliation.” He realized years ago that God had not saved his life for him to live in anger. Because he believed this, he used the rest of his life and his position to make a difference by pushing for better safety standards for children in Vietnam.

It is a great responsibility and honor to be appointed as a representative of your country to another. As followers of Christ we are “ambassadors for Christ” (2 Cor. 5:20). Just as God sent Christ to reconcile us to Himself (v.18), we now have the ministry of “reconciliation” (v.19). Our message is that all can be redeemed in Christ because God “made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (v.21).

In response to the reconciling love Jesus offers us, we can share that love with others. Let’s take our role seriously. Wherever God places us in this world, He can use us as walking billboards of reconciliation for Jesus Christ. —C. P. Hia

I am a stranger here, within a foreign land;

My home is far away, upon a golden strand,

Ambassador to be of realms beyond the sea,

I’m here on business for the King! —Cassel

Good news kept silent is no news at all.

Bible in a year: Psalms 94-96; Romans 15:14-33

Insight

The Christian life is one of transformation. This is described for us in verse 17 of today’s text. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” We are reconciled with God and have become new creatures—His ambassadors. As His ambassadors, we are called to present Christ to the world around us because of the wonder of what He did for us: “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us” (vv.20-21).