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Dr. Samuel Proctor—late pastor of Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem—was once a Peace Corps leader. He said he was amazed at how many young people were willing to serve under raw conditions in poor countries. He saw their dedication especially at the end of their two-year term—few wanted to come home. Their passion was similar to the Apostle Paul’s. In Acts Chapter 20, he speaks of his loyalty to Christ. He said this to the elders of Ephesus: “You know that from the day I set foot in the province of Asia until now I have done the Lord’s work humbly and with many tears. I have endured the trials that came to me from the plots of the Jews. I never shrank back from telling you what you needed to hear, either publicly or in your homes. I have had one message for Jews and Greeks alike—the necessity of repenting from sin and turning to God, and of having faith in our Lord Jesus. Now I am bound by the Spirit to go to Jerusalem. I don’t know what awaits me, except that the Holy Spirit tells me in city after city that jail and suffering lie ahead. But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus—the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God.” Dr Proctor said he found that what Christ said is true: when we lose our lives for His sake, we find them.
