John 15:8 By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.

“You are going to share your testimony in service tonight”. Those were the scariest words I had ever heard in my life. It was one of the elders at our Bible School informing me, minutes before our service started, that I was supposed to share my salvation testimony that night in service. I was terrified to say the least. What was my response? The first thing I did was run to the men’s room to lose my dinner. I was so filled with panic that I had to throw up. Somehow I made it through the night but this experience has always been a sign to me about my calling to preach the gospel. Preaching is not a vocation for the talented public orators, it is a supernatural calling where God is glorified by using the unqualified. Here are some comments from A. B. Simpson about God being glorified through our weakness.

“The true way to glorify God is for God to show His glory through us, to shine through us as empty vessels, reflecting His fullness of grace and power. The sun is glorified when it has a chance to show its light through the crystal window, or in reflection from the spotless mirror or the glassy sea. There is nothing that glorifies God so much as for a weak and helpless man or woman to be able to triumph through His strength in places where the highest human qualities will fail us and to carry on in divine power through every form of toll and suffering. A spirit naturally weak, irresolute, selfish, and sinful, transformed into sweetness, purity and power and standing victorious amid circumstances from which its natural qualities must utterly unfit it brings glory to God. A mind not naturally wise or strong, yet directed by a divine wisdom and carried along the path of a great and mighty plan, being used to accomplish stupendous results for God and man-this glorifies God.”

So today, I magnify my ministry because it is the glory of God. By His grace I have preached in New Orleans for over thirty five years and the Lord has raised up an incredible church. We have seen many thousands saved at our services and our production Beyond the Grave. There are converts in every church in this region. The Lord has allowed me to preach in Asia, Europe, Africa, North and South America, and Australia multiple times. Am I bragging? Absolutely! I am magnifying the Lord’s gift and calling to preach in my life. Without Him, I am headed to the men’s room to lose my lunch. With Him, I proclaim the word with signs and wonders.