Spiritual Beggars

Vacation

Every time my husband and I travel to the beach for a few days, we frequently think, "How much longer till we get there? Are we there yet? Only so many more miles or hours. I can’t wait to get out of this car." Upon arrival. We scramble to unload our luggage and race to the planned activities. Before we know it, we are on the way back home, repeating the same questioning process.

Spiritual Beggars

A few weeks ago, a devotion was shared referencing Acts 3. The speaker was talking about the beggar who was lame since birth but was then healed by Peter. After the beggar was cured, he jumped and danced with excitement and happiness. The speaker used the term spiritual beggars and something in me clicked. This is true for most, if not all, us all whether we realize it or not. 

Spiritual Journey

As I contemplated that beggar, I thought of my life and spiritual journey. I sometimes ask, Are you coming today, Lord? How much longer? I plead with Him like this when I am in distress over world events, social matters, or whatever may be going on in my heart. But when the click happened, I thought, shouldn’t I be saying, Wait Lord. Not yet. I have more work to do for You. Give me more time to reach more people. I know that nothing I think or say has any influence on the timing of Jesus' return. Only the Father knows the hour. But, my questions, pleading, prayers, and thought process do have influence over my heart for others.

I’m not the only one that tries to reach others for Jesus and feels like I’m failing. Others are discouraged too. When we witness, we don’t always know if we affected anyone's heart for Jesus. But we press on, move forward, hope. Why?

Eternal Destination

Vacation journeys are sometimes tedious. The vacation itself is short, and over before we know it. Life can also be tedious and it, too, is short and over before we know it. Unlike our vacation destinations, our spiritual destination will last forever. It will occur in the most radiant and beautiful place we cannot even imagine or in a dark, fiery pit of destruction that will never be quenched. We determine that destination based on our decision to choose Jesus or not.

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Revelation 14:9-11 states, A third angel followed them and said in a loud voice: 'If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives its mark on their forehead or on their hand, they, too, will drink the wine of God’s fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. They will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment will rise for ever and ever. There will be no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and its image, or for anyone who receives the mark of its name.'

One of my Bibles (NIV) provide a study note for verses 10-11 that is labeled Is this hell? This excerpt from the note declares the following, Burning sulfur is commonly associated with the torments of hell. These verses describe the unending suffering of all those who give allegiance to worldly evil... (emphasis mine).

Do We Want Anyone to Burn Eternally?

I can’t think of anyone that I want to be in the fiery furnace or have unending suffering. Can you? Sure, every now and then I momentarily think I might want someone to have their hind parts held to the fire for a second- and that’s not nice- much less holy- (I need to work on that) But no, there is no one close to me or even a stranger, or any criminal that I would want to stay in eternal flames of hell.

How Can We Prevent It?

We can't change anyone's heart. That is the job of the Holy Spirit, but we can ask God for His divine help in living our lives in a pleasing way for Him and to have a bold witness for Him. Don’t take it personal when people don’t want to hear about Jesus. It isn’t about us. It’s about Him and them.

© Lisa Pritchard, 2025 

A sweet friend gave me the book, Sharing Jesus Without Fear by William Fay. I was surprised to learn that “Nonbelievers must hear the gospel an average of 7.6 times before they receive it. (Fay,1999, p.11).” Some will believe in fewer exposures; some may take many more. Regardless of the statistic, plant the seed when the Spirit leads you. We aren’t held accountable for someone’s response to the witness. We are held accountable for choosing to obey or disobey the prompting of the Spirit.

Welcome to the Family

If there is even one spiritual beggar out there reading this that is moved by the Holy Spirit to accept Jesus and make Him the Lord of your life, then I will be glad to say, Welcome to the family! I will meet you at home soon. Until then sing, jump, dance, and witness along your journey to share with others the goodness and joy that you have found.

 www.praying-prodigals.com

© Lisa Pritchard, 2025