Don't Underestimate the Power of Words

I spoke recently with a teacher who was pretty discouraged about the lack of apparent spiritual growth in the adults she was teaching. "Maybe I should pray and ask God to show them a miracle, and then they will believe!" she said with some exasperation.

I encouraged her to look at the story of Jesus interacting with the Samaritan woman at the well in John 4. Notice how this event ends in belief for a whole community:

" Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman's testimony, "He told me everything I ever did." So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. And because of his words many more became believers.

They said to the woman, "We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world."

Did you catch the point? WORDS convinced them to believe. No statement about miracles there. Just the power of Jesus' words are enough.

(Interestingly, Jesus returns to Galilee after this -- and here a miracle is required. See John 4:46-53)

So do not doubt the power of God's words to transforms lives. Just keep on teaching to change lives.