Maybe you know the feeling—when you’re heading into a crowded place and you don’t know where you’re going. You whisper threats to your husband if he dares lose you, and you grab onto his jacket because he’s your only hope of getting where you need to go.
But what if you could be the one leading the way?
In Zechariah there is good news that the Lord is restoring Jerusalem, and he tells his people that four months out of the year will be filled with happy festivals. The people in the cities are going to be inviting each other to go to Jerusalem.
“Thus says the Lord of Hosts: In those days ten men from every language of the nations will take hold of the garment of a Jew, saying, ‘Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you'” (Zech. 8:23).
Imagine one person who is connected to the presence of God.
Then imagine a man from Canada, a man from Romania, a man from Australia, a man from the States, a man from Kenya, a man from Fiji, a man from Turkey, a man from Bangkok, a man from Mumbai, and a man from Thailand—all grabbing onto the jacket of the person connected to God.
Because they know this one man knows the way.
How do they know?
We read in Zechariah that the Lord is going to bless his people once again. Crops will grow, rain will come and the people will be able to earn a living. This will be the fulfillment of the specific covenant he made with them long ago.
That kind of prosperity is visible.
Even though we’re not living under that old covenant, I think we can pull truth from this verse and apply it to our own lives, as followers of Christ.
The Spirit of Christ is inside us, which is even better than visiting Him in Jerusalem. When God’s Spirit is at work in us, there are visible results—evidence of joy and provision and strength. People can see God is making a difference in our lives.
And we know Christ expects us to light up the world. I believe He actually means the world—the whole world.
We live in a time when it is possible to influence the globe.
Can you picture yourself like that one Jew, with 10 people from other countries wanting to grab onto your robe because they can see God is with you? Because they know you know the way to life and joy and everything good?
So here’s the prayer we can form out of Zechariah 8:23:
Father, work in my life so other people can see You are with me!
We can make the prayer even more specific.
Work in my finances, so people can see You are taking care of my needs.
Work in my family, so people can see You build relationships.
Work in my heart, so my co-workers can see You are a God of integrity, strength and joy.
Work in the broken places, so people can see You are a healer.
And then we should be expectant, right? We should expect people to want to grab hold of us and ask us to lead the way.
What might it look like when God answers this prayer for you?
Christy Fitzwater is the author of A Study of Psalm 25: Seven Actions to Take When Life Gets Hard. She is a blogger, pastor’s wife and mom of two teenagers and resides in Montana. Visit christyfitzwater.com for more information about her ministry.
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