Sometimes we never know why the Holy Spirit prompted us to pray. Other times, we find out as soon as we stop praying. That’s what happened to me today. I had a sudden urge to pray so I answered the call spiritually. Little did I know 15 minutes later I would answer a call naturally that had ramifications for someone’s spiritual eternity. I won’t recount the entire phone call here. Suffice it to say that a man, we’ll call him Ronny, wanted some help getting his book published. In between curse words that it wouldn’t be edifying to repeat, he told me of his wordly exploits, from leaving people bleeding on the side of the road to living through a train wreck because he was too drunk to die to getting kidnapped by Mexican drug lords during a marijuana run to being kicked out of prison by a frustrated warden.

I’ll admit, at first I wanted to hang up the phone as quickly as possible. I didn’t want to hear anymore about this sinful book proposal, nor was I willing to help someone glorify the devil. I’ll admit it. I interrupted him more than once to suggest I needed to go, but he kept recounting his ‘bad guy’ stories with noted pride. He was most proud of the fact that he was still alive.

Thank God, the Holy Ghost got my attention.

I suddenly realized why I was getting this phone call. The man needed to hear the Gospel. God used a Yellow Pages ad to drive him to me under the guise of getting a book published. I interrupted him again and said, “You’re right. It sounds like you should be dead. Have you ever thought about why you aren’t?”

Silence.

“God must have kept you here for a reason. He clearly has a purpose for your life,” I continued.

Ronny agreed. He thought it must be because of his son. I told him I thought it was something even greater, and that he should pursue God for the answer. Then I shared with him the Gospel of salvation. I did the work of an evangelist.

When Ronny hung up, he said he was sure he was going to heaven. He thought maybe a Christian publisher might be interested in the story of a bad guy who had a changed of heart. I hope to see his book bring glory the God who saved him one day.

Amen.