How God Uses Everyday Obedience in Unexpected Places | Guest Speaker Rufus Wallace

Early Life and Youth Group Foundations

I want to speak to you a little bit this morning and share some of my testimony. It has been a few years since I have done that. I know the ones in here who have heard it are probably Bob and Diane, maybe Joe Lennon, and I am not sure about Bill and Kathy. I am not going to do a huge production; I am just going to take you through a few highlights and then bring it up to what I want to share.

Let us pray. Lord God, thank You so much for allowing us to be here today so that we can come and be in Your presence, hear Your Word, meditate on it, and put it into action. Lord, we just ask blessings on this in Jesus' name. Amen.

I am going to start at my birth just to kick things off. I was born at Sheppard Air Force Base in Wichita Falls. I spent all my younger days, up until about second grade, living on military bases across California, Texas, and Sevilla, Spain. That was the benefit of being an Air Force brat.

As time went on through all of that, my parents would carry me to church, though not as frequently as we probably should have gone. I was introduced to God and church pretty young. However, it was not until junior high, around seventh grade, that I was actually saved and baptized.

I really loved the youth group at the church I was attending at the time. I feel like that is where my roots were deeply planted. No matter what happened afterward, I knew that God was always there calling me to Himself. We participated in every activity available—Wednesday nights, Sunday nights, retreats, and camps. It was really important that this took place in my life, and I believe it is equally important for every young person here. You need to be deeply involved in church so that your roots are deeply planted.

Drifting Away and the Pattern of Worldly Pursuits

As time went on and I got into high school, probably after ninth grade into tenth grade, I started drifting toward worldly things. I took my eyes off Jesus. Going on into college, I kept that same pattern—partying and doing things I did not need to do. Again, my eyes were off Jesus.

When I finished college and entered my career, it was not long before I started my own business. Here again, my eyes were not on Jesus like they should have been. I went to church, but it was fairly infrequent. I had convictions, but my flesh wanted to ignore them and head in a different direction.

The Wake-Up Call and Discipleship

When I was around twenty-six years old, I woke up one Sunday morning to a voice telling me to get up, get dressed, and go to church. I was obedient to that. The next Sunday, the same thing happened. By the third Sunday, I did not hear the voice; I just got up and went.

I spent the next couple of years attending that church faithfully and getting involved. At one point, I joined a discipleship class, which was a real game-changer. It aligned me to seek after God and be obedient to Him. My pastor led the class, offering it to me and about five others, and we completed a study called Master Life. I am going to move forward in the story, but we will return to this moment shortly.

Business Success, Personal Trials, and a New Season

A few years later, we sold our house and moved out of the area, and I stopped attending that church. My business was doing very well, which unfortunately led me to drift away again, chasing money and things I did not need to pursue. Again, my eyes were off Jesus.

As a result of all that and moving along, my marriage at the time failed. Deep down, I knew God was still there; I was the one who had turned my back. So, I started seeking Him again.

A little later, I married Brooke, and we served together at her home church. Still, I was not as grounded as I needed to be. Around 2015, we began church-hopping to search for a church home. We ended up at O West with intentions of visiting several other churches. We had a plan to visit at least three churches, three times each, before making a decision. However, we had to listen to what God was saying because He called us to stay. While there, we got involved in ministry and began serving in leadership capacities like we do now. God had a different plan than we did.

During that time, the Lord challenged us again. Brooke and I were empty nesters for a very short time before we were called to take in two boys, our grandsons. Many of you who have known us for a while know about that and where we are today. Beyond that, we were called into further leadership and serving God, keeping our eyes focused on Jesus to do His will.

An Unexpected Assignment at Work

That puts us at the point where I wanted to return to when I was taking Master Life classes. I had just wrapped up a residential construction job around late November or early December, and I did not have an immediate project lined up. I received a call from a recruiter seeking temporary workers for M&M/Mars. I thought, why not? It was indoor work where I could stay steady for a thousand hours before moving on, while still doing construction on the side.

After working at M&M for a few weeks, I went into the break room one day. A young man walked up to me and asked, "Hey, what are you doing here?" I replied, "I'm not following you. I don't understand what you mean. I'm here to work." He said, "No, I'm not talking about working here. What are you doing here?" Again, I did not follow him, and it was time to get back to work.

The next day, in the same place, the same thing happened. After two or three times, I asked him, "What is it that you want? What do you need?" He said, "I want to know why you are here." I told him, "I am here to work and take care of my family." He said, "No, you're still not getting what I'm saying. You're here because something is bugging me."

I still did not follow him, so I began thinking and praying about it. I prayed, "Lord, I don't know what this guy is trying to say or if he is messing with me. Lead me, guide me, and use me how You want."

When I ran into him again, he said, "I'm going to ask you one more time, what are you doing here?" I replied, "I am here to work, praise God, and be at His service." He said, "I knew there was something! I knew that's what it was. Can I talk to you?" I said, "Sure."

Deliverance, Worship, and Eternal Hope

I ended up praying for him, and he opened up and confided in me. He shared that during college, he took basic courses with plans to go to seminary, but he got wrapped up in a really bad lifestyle and had been lost ever since. I said, "I'm sorry to hear that, but let's pray about it. God can bring you home. He can deliver you." He confessed all kinds of things to me and got it off his chest.

As a result, I invited him to church. He came on a Wednesday night for a praise and prayer service like we have here. I looked over at him, and this guy sang better than anyone I have ever heard in my life. He was just belting it out, not reserved, not holding back, worshiping with all his heart. It was exciting to see God move in his life. A week or two later, he got baptized. He was raised Methodist, so he had never been fully immersed, and he wanted to do that.

Things were going very well, and he continued attending church for a while. But as I mentioned, we ended up selling our house and moving, and my assignment at M&M ended, so I lost daily contact with him. About eight or nine months later, I received word that he was in the hospital. I tried to go see him, but his mother intercepted everyone, saying he was not taking visitors and only wanted to see doctors. So, I went back and prayed for him and his family.

A couple of weeks later, I got news that he had passed away. That was hard, but I realized at that point that God had it all under control. It was His plan all along.

Abiding in the Vine and the Mission of the Church

Looking back at the Master Life discipleship class, I thought about what we learned and what God was calling us to do. That was when I remembered one of the scriptures we memorized, John 15:5: "I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing."

That stood heavy on my heart. I said, "Thank You, God, for using me to reach someone," because only God knew what was in store for him. He passed away a short time after recommitting his life. I believe to this day that his death was not a result of his salvation or his desire to serve God, but rather the consequence of past sin carrying forward.

It is amazing to me that I was just there to work, and suddenly I became a vessel for God. The only thing it had to do with me was that I was present and obedient to the Lord—nothing else. It was all God.

We have a mission. Having church and fellowship is great—we need those things and are commanded to gather together—but our true calling is to go out and share the good news of the gospel. That is what we are supposed to be doing. God wants us to be ready, available, and willing with boldness.

If we are going to do that, we must speak truth. First Peter 3:15 says, "Honor Christ as holy and be ready to answer anyone who asks about your hope, doing so with gentleness and respect." Colossians 4:3–4 says to pray that God opens doors for the message to be proclaimed clearly.

We have a direct commandment in Acts 1:8 to receive power from the Holy Spirit to be witnesses in all places. Our job as Christians and disciples of Christ is to go out into the world and tell everybody about Jesus. That is the most important thing.

I have noticed in my own life that I went through the motions for over fifty years, and only a short time in all of that was I really following what God wanted me to do. Fortunately, I am back in that spot, I want to stay in it, and I want all of you to get into that spot. That is our job.

Second Corinthians 5:20 says we act as ambassadors for Christ, pleading with others to be reconciled to God. Romans 10:9 says to declare with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead.

Our job is clear and important, especially today when there is a lot of "church-going" happening, but not a lot of doing what we are told to do: going out, preaching the Word, and reconciling others to God to build His kingdom.

Closing Prayer

Let us pray. Heavenly Father, I come to You right now and ask that You touch every heart here. Give us the conviction to be obedient, to follow You, and to put You first and foremost in our lives above all else. Lord, I pray that we would further Your kingdom and help one another. We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.