Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples, and they said to Him, "Are you He that should come, or do we look for another? "- Matthew 11:2,3

He sat alone in the prison of his thoughts. In the darkness of his confinement, the light of his yesterdays was growing dimmer.
   “Was He the One, or have I wasted my life? Did I miss it? I can’t really tell. My purpose was like an arrow shooting straight from the power of my zeal. Could I have shot past the mark and missed it? Did I fail?”

He had to know, so he sent his disciples to ask Him.
    “Jesus, are You the One – or is there another?”

Jesus looked at the men John the Baptist had sent, and He could see the man in prison they had left behind. Feeling the turmoil in John’s soul as if it was His own Jesus replied,
    “Tell John what you have seen, the blind see, the deaf hear, the lame walk and the poor have the gospel preached to them. God is here.”

And there is no prophet greater than this John who baptized and prepared the way for the coming of Messiah – all alone in desert rags, now locked in chains awaiting death for declaring righteousness.

He left behind no great buildings or wealth to testify of his greatness; only the treasure that God would recognize – the glory of a faithful heart.

Go back and encourage this one and tell him his life wasn’t wasted. He declared the One and fulfilled the purpose of his calling, though he struggles to know it now.
    He needs a cup of cold water from a friend, a smile and a word, “Well done,” like all of us do when the race is so long.

Sitting in the prison of our thoughts, when we ask “Are You the One?” – You send someone with a cup and a testimony.
   “Yes, Jesus is the One.Your life serving Him was never wasted. Well done!”

Copyright H.D. Shively 2005

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