“Then the glory of the lord will be revealed, and all people will see it together.  The Lord has spoken.” –Isaiah 40:5

“Oh the folly of any mind that would explain God before obeying him!  That would map out the character of God instead of crying, Lord what wouldst thou have me do?” –George MacDonald

Imagine you’re at the end of your life.  You’ve done everything you dreamed of doing.  You’ve had a long and fruitful life of walking with God.  The record of your experiences is full of meaning—bursting with love and great accomplishments.  Everything you wanted has happened…except for one thing.

That’s the story of Simeon, A Jerusalem man we read about in Luke 2: 25-33.  Simeon was nearing the end of his life, but he was just waiting for one more thing—to see the coming of the Messiah!

Simeon was so closely in tune with God, that Simeon knew he wasn’t destined to die until he saw “the Christ” who was coming from God…and would set God’s people free.  Though Simeon may have been growing deaf in his ears, after a lifetime of listening to God, he excelled at hearing God’s prompting.  Simeon had cultivated this ability—along with the habit of acting on whatever that still, small voice told him to do.  This time, God told Simeon to come to the temple courts on a certain day.  So he did…and he was just in time to meet Joseph and Mary as they were bringing the baby Jesus to be circumcised.  A life well-lived and a heart open to doing God’s will had brought Simeon to the perfect place, and the perfect time, to experience his last and greatest dream come true.

Though Simeon’s physical eyes may have been failing, the sharp, well-practiced eyes of his heart beheld what Isaiah 40:5 had proclaimed—the glory of the lord revealed before him!  In exaltation, Simeon softly lifted the tiny Savior of the world in his gnarled old hands saying: “God, you can now release your servant…With my own eyes I’ve seen your salvation; it’s now out in the open for everyone to see” (Luke 2:29-31, The Message).  At just that moment, an 84-year-old woman named Anna, who also listened to God, showed up and began loudly singing praise songs and telling anyone who would listen that the baby Simeon held was the Messiah.

This old man and old woman had done it all and seen it all.  They’d fully experienced life with all its joy and losses.  They’d lived in silent hope and joyful service.  They’d lived long enough and deeply enough to see their dreams come true—and to recognize those dreams when they saw them.  And now at last, they were ready for God to take them home.

There has been a great deal written and said about discovering your purpose in life, but we could learn a few things from Anna and Simeon.  They clearly understood what the Apostle Paul later talked about when he compared living out his purpose to finishing well in the long-distance race of life.  Here’s how the Message version of 2 Timothy 4:7-8 translates what Paul said: “I’ve run hard right to the finish, believed all the way.  All that’s left now is the shouting—God’s applause!”

Isn’t that a great picture?  God cheering you on as you come in for the last lap.  A life well-lived; a race well-run.

Unfortunately, lots of people out there are running in circles and getting nowhere fast.

But Jesus is inviting you to follow him in leading a life that goes somewhere truly amazing.  If you match his pace, and follow him closely, you’ll see dreams come true and experience what it means to overflow with life.  On the way, you’ll touch and inspire many others who will join you on the track to greater joy, deeper peace, and eternal, inexhaustible life.

Don’t make the mistake of thinking Christ only makes one invitation and that once you accept his gift of eternal life you’re done.  The truth is Jesus is constantly inviting you to proceed higher up and deeper in with him.

Miraculous Timing

Miracles are often a matter of timing—either a natural process being sped up, or just the right string of “amazing coincidences.”  Part of what makes the story of Simeon and Anna miraculous is that they showed up in exactly the right location, at precisely the right moment to see their personal prayers answered and their lifetime dreams come true.  God delights in answering prayer and performing miracles—even though we often don’t recognize them in the moment they’re taking place.  That’s how one of the greatest miracles is Steve’s [Sjogren] life happened.

From the earliest days of my childhood, I remember being very connected to my dad.  Then came the summer of 1968.  The Vietnam conflict was at a fever pitch and two of my cousins were killed in action over there.  If that wasn’t sad enough, in early July my dad came down with a terrible case of pneumonia he couldn’t shake.  On his birthday, July 10^th, the doctors discovered his pneumonia was really lung cancer that had spread throughout his entire body.

To make a long story tragically short, my dad died precisely five weeks to the day after he was diagnosed, and five weeks after he turned 39.  My 12-year-old life shattered in more pieces than I could count.  The time leading up to my dad’s death was the most devastating thing I had ever gone through.

My dad had always been a clear-headed, hard-charging guy who led a good life morally and ethically.  From the age of 25 to his death he’d been a family man working his way up the corporate ladder to become president of a 400-employee company.  The only thing that wasn’t clear-cut for him was his spiritual life.

At the time I knew next to nothing about God, but in the days leading up to my father’s death, I prayed what I discovered later was a miraculously life-changing prayer.  I cried and pleaded with God saying, “Whoever you are, please save my dad.”

Unbeknownst to me an hour away, just west of Wichita, God was answering my prayer.  My dad’s cousin—who’d just had a profound spiritual awakening and invited Jesus into his life about a month before—sensed God telling him to go and share Jesus’ love with my dad before he died.

To fully appreciate this story, it’s important to realize that my dad had a steady flow of visitors in the hospital each day, and especially on the weekends.  This particular Saturday, about four weeks after his diagnosis, he was going downhill fast.  His cousin felt God’s clear invitation urging him, “Get up now!  Go immediately to the hospital, and I’ll give you an opportunity to share your story in a way that will get through!”

He thought, “This can’t be right.  It’s Saturday and these are prime visiting hours.  His room will be filled with people.  I’ll never get to speak with him in private.”  Still, my dad’s cousin felt a continuing sense of urgency.  The good news is that he answered God’s invitation and in doing so became an answer to my prayer (even though I didn’t fully understand exactly how until many years later).

Now I’m unspeakably grateful he took that risk and made that long drive to the hospital.  And coincidentally (or miraculously—depending on how you look at it), he got over 90 minutes of uninterrupted time with my dad to tell his story and invite my dad to join him in walking with God.  As sick as he was, my dad agreed without hesitation.  He prayed a profound and openhearted prayer and asked Jesus to save him.

Sadly, the very next day, the cancer advanced to the point that it affected his brain and he was unable to think or communicate clearly.  During the last week of his life, he was either in a stupor due to the cancer or due to the massive amounts of morphine he was being given.  The timing of his conversation with my cousin had turned out to be just right.

I didn’t get this story from my dad’s cousin until years later, but for some reason I was very peaceful in the minutes and hours after getting the news my dad had died.  I was relieved that his suffering was over, but more than that, I felt a kind of calming presence around me.  I know this sounds a little odd, but as I opened the screen door leading into our house that night, I “heard” an inner voice speaking to me.

A still and small voice (I would later learn to recognize) was speaking comfort directly to my 12-year-old spirit.

“From now on” the voice said, “I’ll be your Father.”  Years later I discovered Psalm 68:5 and underlined the part that explains that God is a “father to the fatherless.”

Steve’s dad’s cousin was so filled up with God that he heard the Holy Spirit’s voice calling him to get in his car and go share his story.  As he obeyed, God’s love flowed out from him and into Steve’s father in exactly the right moment that Steve’s dad was ready to receive it.  Those actions not only helped answer Steve’s prayers but the prayers of many others who loved Steve’s dad.

God answers prayers even when you’re not aware of his loving presence in your life.  God is constantly inviting you to get to know him better, to follow him more closely, and to act on loving, miracle-producing impulses from his Spirit.  You may never know of all the prayers you’ve helped to answer or all the lives you’ve helped to change as you reach out and allow God’s love to flow into you and out into the world around you.

Listen Closely

In this book you’ve heard scores of stories and read several dozen passages of Scripture about how God wants to fill you up with his love and pour out “streams of living water” into the world of your relationships.  If this is something you’re longing for and if you want your life to “bear fruit that will last,” we have a few final words of advice for you.  First, like Simeon, Anna, Steve’s dad’s cousin, and countless followers of Jesus before you, tune your ear to hear God’s voice.  God is not just content to speak to you from time to time.  As you grow in your ability to perceive God’s voice, you’ll recognize that he’s speaking to you constantly.  God is communicating through what’s written in the Bible and what the Holy Spirit is saying in your heart.  If you’re willing to pay attention, God is inviting you to begin writing miraculous stories in your own life and in the lives of your world.  Today, if you’ll listen closely, God is knocking on the door of your heart.  If you’ll open up and go with him, God will lead you on adventures so cool and so exciting you won’t be able to shut up about them.

There are so many people all around you who need an encouraging word or a practical touch of God’s love with no strings attached—it’s your world, and God’s inviting you to share his love with it.

If you will hone in on God’s heart for almost any individual person, you’ll get a specific assignment telling you how to proceed.  It’s not complicated, no matter what you’ve thought in the past.

Final Words

Your world—the world God wants you to reach with his love, that final tier of your fountain—it’s all around you.  Take a step out your front door and you’ll see it there, stretching out before you.  People walking their dogs and getting into their cars.  People laughing and talking and drinking coffee.  People hurting and crying and starving for food.  All of them.  They’re all longing.  They’re all within your reach.  They’re all part of the world God has put you in—the personal sphere of influence God has given you.

Mary and Joseph, the Apostles Peter and Paul, St. Francis, Martin Luther, Bill Bright, Mother Teresa, Billy Graham, Brother Andrew.  Ordinary people who constantly received God’s love and poured it out on the world around them.  Go ahead and add your name to the list—your world will never be the same.

And when the day finally comes that you’re approaching the end of a life of walking with God—when you’re looking back through the catalog of lives you’ve touched and helped to transform with Christ’s love—it’s our prayer that all of God’s dreams for your life will have come true…and that you will taste heaven’s joys long before you arrive there.

Getting Your Feet Wet

Picture yourself on your deathbed after a long and fruitful life.  Friends and family have come to say goodbye, to celebrate your greatest accomplishments, and to tell stories about the lives you’ve touched.

Who would you want to be there and what would you like them to be talking about?

The Reflection Pool

• It’s a morbid question, sure, but a good one—what would you want written on your headstone?  In other words, what do you want to be known for?
• How can you begin building that legacy now?
• How have the concepts of Outflow challenged the way you view your life as a Christian?  How will that affect the way you live your life from here on out?