Have you ever felt the nudge of the Holy Spirit asking you to talk to a person about God? A friend? A family member? A <gasp> stranger?

I’m not talking about sharing the gospel with someone—not necessarily. I’m talking about the unexpected time when the Spirit nudges you to put yourself out there and approach a person you normally wouldn’t.

Sometimes that’s happened to me. At first, I would struggle with the idea of approaching someone I wasn’t in a conversation with already. Especially if they were a stranger. Well, maybe even if they were a friend or a family member, because sometimes it’s harder to talk to those who knew us before we became a Christian. Still, there was always a hesitation—maybe only for a moment but still there. Let’s look at one of my favorite examples of this.

^“Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Rise and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” This is a desert place. And he rose and went. And there was an Ethiopian, a eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure. He had come to Jerusalem to worship and was returning, seated in his chariot, and he was reading the prophet Isaiah. And the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and join this chariot.”So Philip ran to him and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?” Acts 8:26-30

Here we have Philip following the direction of the Lord to go to a desert place. He didn’t argue and say, “But I’m doing work here,” or “I’m supposed to hang out with the guys tonight.” Instead, he rose and went.

Then there’s the Ethiopian. This is a man of means, a court official to the Queen, and in charge of all her treasure. He was important, riding in a chariot or carriage of some sort—probably dressed in expensive clothing. Someone a little above the normal traffic on the road.

And here’s Philip, who is not any of those things. Yet, when the Spirit said, “Go over and join this chariot,” Philip ran. Once again, he didn’t question the directive. He didn’t hesitate or stall with excuses—he ran. Can I emphasize that enough. He. Ran!

How I admire Philip’s heart for God, his unquestioning obedience, and his eagerness to serve. When he ran to that chariot he had no idea what he would find, what need was there. He simply obeyed, and that obedience encouraged a man to give his heart to Jesus.

Going forward, let’s remember this simple act that Philip did so eagerly. Perhaps the next time the Spirit nudges us to talk to someone, we won’t hesitate or come up with a million and one excuses. Instead, we’ll face the task with eagerness and the expectation of what God will do in that moment.

In fact, I challenge you to pray about a chance to serve by asking God to give you the opportunity to share the gospel, listen to a grieving person, pray with someone who is hurting, or just to see what God is asking you to do. I know I will be listening for His nudge. I hope you do too.