One day God spoke to me about the importance of our being a house with the Light turned on. This parable came to me as I was reflecting on what had happened when I was first used by God to be a witness, and bring two who were confused into the Kingdom of God. This incident happened to me when I was working in a factory. I worked the midnight shift. When we took our first break at 2 A.M., there was much talk around the table of hatred toward our black brothers. Riots had been occurring in Miami over the trial of six white police officers who had been acquitted of beating a black man named Mc Duffy to death with their billy clubs. Just what heinous crime was Mr. Mc Duffy guilty of? It was none other than the “capital offense” of having run a stop sign.

At this point in my life I was just a six year old “born again” Christian. Sad to say, I still did not know the Bible as well as I would liked to have. Being only six years old, I was still somewhat intimidated. Yet within me there was a “fire” raging to speak up against all of the hate talk I had been hearing. It got to where I could stand it no longer. “Our black brothers have a right to feel angry! I said. What happened to Mr. Mc Duffy was wrong - it was murder. It was unjust, letting those who killed him go free.”

One very ignorant guy remarked, “We have a ‘nigger lover’!” I looked directly at him and asked, “What if such a thing had happened to your brother? Everyone knew those who had murdered him were guilty as sin. They were put on trial the result being, they were told you are not guilty of having done anything wrong. Would you not be very angry over the injustice done to your brother? Many black people feel the color of their skin makes them brothers. But there are Christian black people who know the Truth, we ALL are brothers regardless the color of our skin.” This worked well in shutting his mouth. I then got real bold asking, “Are any of you a Christian?” “I am,” one guy responded. Are you really, several others asked surprisingly. “Well, my wife drags me with her to church on Sundays,” was his reply.

“Do you know what it says in the Bible?” I asked, addressing the whole group. Getting no response, I went on to say, “It says anyone who says he is walking in the “Light,” and hates his brother, is in darkness still” (1st. John, Chapter 2 vs.9). There was only silence. They looked at me as if to say, “so you’re one of those.” Then something wonderful happened! Glenn, the young man sitting directly across from me said, “You sound like you believe there is a God.” “Of course there is a God Glenn!” I gave him several things to think about. He said, “I used to believe in God, but now I’m not so sure He exists.” Glenn started to ask me questions, but our 15 minute break time had come to an end. By the influence of the Holy Spirit, this six year old Christian said as we were heading back to work; “Glenn, I want you to think about every question you have regarding God’s existence. When we go on our half hour break at 4 A.M. I want you to ask me about each of them. I promise I will give you an answer to every question you may have.”

That hour and forty five minutes flew by fast, it was now 4 A.M. As I walked toward the refrigerator to get my food I said a silent prayer. “Holy Spirit, I don’t know just what kind of lies and deceptions satan has placed in Glenn’s mind and heart, but You do. Please give me the ability to remove every lie and every doubt by the Truth of Your Word.” We started out with me saying, “Glenn, I’ve got “Good News” for you. Not only does God exist, He’s my Father, I know Him personally. I’m going to reintroduce you to Him, because He’s your Father too. satan, has tried to rob you of your relationship and steal your inheritance, but we are going to put a stop to that! Now just what kind of questions do you have?”

Glenn had several questions, some very simple, others which were far out. But I’m happy to report scripture after scripture came effortlessly into my mind to answer each and every question given. I was prompted to ask Glenn if he had been seeking God. “Yes I have,” was his answer. “Just how have you been seeking Him, I asked. Have you been seeking Him by going to a Christian church?” He answered, “To be honest, I haven’t been anywhere in over two years.” “ Well then, have you been seeking Him by reading His Word, to find out Who He is, why He created you, and what kind of a relationship He desires to share with you?” He said, “No, I don’t even own a Bible.” “But Glenn, you told me you have been seeking God. How about this, have you been seeking God in prayer?” “Yes I Have! He said eagerly. I’ve been seeking God in prayer, but I can’t say I’ve found Him, or He’s answered me. So, I’m not really sure He exists.”

The Holy Spirit then gave me exactly the answer Glenn needed to hear. (If you who are reading this feel like Glenn, please listen also to what I am about to tell you.) “That’s good, Glenn! How often have you been seeking God in prayer, every day?” “No, not that often.” “Well how about once a week?” “To be perfectly honest about it, maybe once every two or three months.” “You know Glenn, there are a lot of people like you out there, who say, I’ve been seeking God, but I can’t say I’ve found Him. They don’t know the simple truth God says in His Word. In order to come to God, you must first believe that He is; and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” “What does that mean?” Glenn asked. “It means if you want to know if God exists, you have to work at it. If I were God I don’t think I would reveal myself to someone who only asks me once every two or three months - are You there. Such a person demonstrates they don’t really care whether or not I exist.

You don’t have to recite some fancy prayer - God knows your heart. You can even get angry if you want. You might say something like, If You are there and I’m being deceived I want to know it, and I want to know it NOW! Or you might say, If You created me to share a relationship with You, I don’t want to miss out on it! But don’t ask God just once every two or three months ask Him everyday, all day long. Bug God! Get on His nerves! If you will do this God will answer you, because you will show Him you miss and care about the relationship He desires to share with you. You need only to let God know He is most important to your life.”

At 6 A.M. when we had our last break of the day I gave Glenn a list of some chapters and verses to check out. He said he would stop by on the way home and borrow his grandmother’s Bible to look them up. This he did and not only did it resolve other questions he had, it also made him want to have the inheritance which Jesus came to restore. Glenn wanted to have the power of the Holy Spirit living inside of him. He had never known this was available to him, (even though he had been brought up in a church sometimes calling itself Christian).

I am happy to report Glenn did shortly thereafter receive the Baptism of the Holy Spirit and Fire. Not only that, we started to experience a “revival” in that factory. Glenn’s best friend Joe who worked there too, received the Baptism of the Holy Spirit and Fire as well. The change in their life was immediate and profound. The talk during breaks turned to questions asked of Glenn and Joe about what had happened to them. I was able to watch in amazement, the spiritual depth of the answers both Glenn and Joe gave to each question asked of them. There was no doubt they had received the “Power” which accompanies the Baptism of the Holy Spirit and Fire.

Please picture this scenario if you will. You are walking down a street which has no street lights, it’s after midnight and there’s only a quarter moon out. Suddenly you get that uneasy creepy feeling. You sense something evil is sneaking up behind you. As you speed up your steps down the sidewalk you look at the houses on your side of the street. You are looking to find a place to seek safety, a place where you might go to get immediate help. Would you proceed to the nearest house and bang on the door? Most would answer yes. But let’s add a little to this scenario, what if the lights in that house were off? This could possibly be a sign the owner was asleep, and would be slow or even reluctant to come to the door to give you safety. Worse yet, the owner may not even be at home. Would you still choose that house for help? Or would you choose to travel just a few steps further to the house next door - the one which has the lights turned on? This could be a very good indication that the owner is awake, alert, and consequently more likely to hear and respond positively to your plea for help.

In this parable God has shown me the importance of our being a house (the temple of the Holy Spirit) with the light turned on bright and not hidden. In this world there are those who by the drawing power of the Holy Spirit, are sensing the damage evil has already done to their life. With uneasiness they sense the plans evil has to inflict further damage on their life. They desire to escape, they are seeking someone’s help to avoid any further harm evil wants to do to them. As we daily seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness to reign in our heart. If we daily are choosing to pick up our cross ( making a sacrifice of love), deny ourselves (crucifying the will of our flesh), and following Jesus. Then we will be to that one in need of help - a house with the “Light” turned on.

It has been said that satan never sleeps. Big Deal, NEITHER DOES THE HOLY SPIRIT! Neither then should we be asleep or pretend to be asleep when the Holy Spirit directs someone to us seeking answers, guidance, and help. We must become aware that this is an opportunity for us to demonstrate to God; the first two commandments are alive and well having power and meaning in our life. Besides it is also an opportunity to store up treasure in heaven as well. If you succumb to “fear” rather than exercising your gift of “FAITH,” just look at how great your loss will be. As I said in the beginning, this parable first came to me as I was reflecting on what had happened the time I first was used by God to become a witness. I allowed the Holy Spirit to guide me into bringing two who were confused by the lies and deceptions of satan, into receiving the Kingdom of God. (If any reader happens to know members of Mr. Mc Duffy’s family. Please let them know that from the evil satan did to him; God turned it into good - two souls were brought into God’s Kingdom).

From this exciting experience I learned a valuable lesson. You do not have to be able to quote scriptures like you wrote the Bible. All you and I have to do is love our brother, as our self. The Holy Spirit by our use of Faith, will equip you and I with every answer we will need in order to bring our brother or sister into the Kingdom of God.