Fulfilled Prophecy

 November 15, 2022

Sometimes prophecies are fulfilled in strange and unexpected ways. I was in Cuba, speaking to the congregation of a church in Jovellanos when I heard a loud bang on tin roof. A little boy jumped from his seat, ran down the aisle and came back moments later with a huge mango that had dropped from an overhanging branch. He gave it to Yami, one of the pastors. She turned, handed the mango to me and said, “Whenever a mango drops, whoever we give it to is to start a new congregation in the next twelve months.” She added, “You are a Caleb.” You are wondering what you will do when you retire. You have new mountains to conquer. Go and conquer.”

That was ten years ago. I retired from the church I had pastored for 32 years, spent three years figuring out what retirement was like before taking on another church for an additional three years. Starting a new congregation didn’t happen. 

Last night I got home from another trip to Cuba, where a most interesting thing happened. This past Thursday (the 10th), I had just finished up a second teaching on leadership in the church, when a woman stood up and began talking. She had listened to my first teaching on leadership and was feeling confused about what it meant for her. But hearing what I had just finished saying in the second session, she believed God was telling her to sell everything she had and move to a new city to start a new church. 

Ten years on, and in a way, I am starting a new church…indirectly, perhaps, but I’ll take it, with gratitude. With our God, you just never know.