I think I’ve talked a little bit about this "theory" before in one of my blogs, but nothing too in-depth. I had never even give this "theory" any thought until I found myself on a 28 hours bus ride across South Africa for month 3 of our journey.
As we boarded the bus, I noticed that we actually had assigned seats on this bus, something that usually doesn’t occur when you travel overseas. Normally you can sit anywhere you can find a free seat. I was excited about the opportunity though, and when times like this do arise, I always ask the Lord to speak to me and show me how to minister to the person sitting next to me on the bus, train, plane, boat, etc.…
Sure enough, my ticket had me seated by an African man named, George. He was a very kind feller who didn’t say much at first. A couple hours into our bus ride though, we found ourselves deep in conversation about the Lord. Oddly enough, I began sharing with him as a way to witness to him, but the tables turned and I soon found myself being the one getting ministered to. After talking to George for sometime, I asked him to give me a piece of advice or a word from the Lord. He thought for only a few seconds, before he turned to me, put his finger in my chest, and said…
“You need to be a John. Don’t be a Peter.”
Not entirely sure of what he meant by that, I continued to stare him dead in the eyes, and let it sink in. Then he asked me, “Dusty, do you know what this means?” Hesitantly I replied, “I’m not entirely sure, George, but I think I’m following…”.
George didn’t really give me much more than that. I think he wanted to allow me to take it before the Lord, pray about it, and let Him reveal the true meaning behind it. And in time, He really has helped me to process through the words that George spoke to me that day on the African bus.
Now, 8 months later, it makes perfect sense to me. This has been one of those thoughts that the Lord keeps taking me through this year. It’s been a difficult lesson to learn, but on the other hand, it’s been a sweet one. Team leading, and actually just being on the World Race, period, has taught me what George was trying to say to me that day.
All throughout the race, numerous folks have encouraged me to be bold and confident as I lead. A lot of the time, also encouraging us to “speak up” and make a “noise.” A lot of times, it’s been difficult to process through some of that stuff, and if I’m being honest (there goes that saying again), I haven’t fully jumped on board. I don’t have a problem with speaking up, having a noise, making a ripple for The Kingdom, but at the beginning of my race, God kept speaking one thing over me as I prepared to leave the states…
“Be still and know that I AM God.”
A very difficult thing for me, considering I don’t like being still for more than 5 minutes! A good challenge though, that God has been walking me through. It's easy to make noise, but it's very tough to be still and quiet.
So, why is my blog titled “Peter Vs. John”, you ask? If you look at these two figures in the Bible, they were about as opposite as you can get. I know we’ve all read the stories and heard these names before. If you haven’t though, let me give you a quick rundown. Basically, Peter was one of those guys who always seemed to put his foot in his mouth. Unfortunately, he also seemed really passive-aggressive. This didn’t change the way that Jesus felt about him or how much He loved him, but Peter messed up a lot and did a lot of things that would make you say, “Peter… Why in the world…?” Haha… John on the other hand, was the quiet type. His strength was in his quiet leadership ability. He didn’t say much, but when he did, people listened and knew it was something important that they didn’t wanna miss. I’m not saying that Peter wasn’t influential, but sometimes he just couldn’t be quiet, or still, long enough for nothing. I feel like for the longest time, that’s the way I’ve lived my life, too.
I’ve been challenged this year, especially when I was a team leader, to have a voice and lead people into battle. I think at the beginning of the World Race, that may have been true, but ever since that day with George, I feel like the Lord has been telling me, “Dusty, stop being a Peter. Be a John.”
I wanna make an impact on folk’s lives, and most importantly, I wanna help add lives to The Kingdom. I wanna lead by example and influence, and not by rank or by having big, bold, eloquent, loud words. God continues to speak to me in the quiet, why? He tells me in His word, “Be still and know that I AM God.” Psalm 46:10
There’s nothing like feeling the Fathers arms around you, holding you quietly. Learning to be quiet though, now that’s the tough part!
I wanna be a John. Which one are you?
Love yall.
