Acts 8:26-40
Philip had just been the instrument of a great work in Samaria. So how great must have been his astonishment when he received the order to leave this field of work to go along a desert road! Certainly a strange place to preach the gospel! However he obeys without question. And here comes the chariot of a noble African official who has made a long journey to worship at Jerusalem. But how could he have found God in this city where His Son had been rejected? However this man is bringing back a treasure infinitely more valuable than those of his queen (v. 27): a portion of the Holy Scriptures. And God has led him in his reading to the heart of the book of Isaiah (Isaiah 53:1-12). Thus all has been prepared for the Lord’s servant. The Ethiopian learns through him to know the Lord Jesus. He can be baptised and continue on his way "rejoicing" in order to become, we like to think, a messenger of God’s grace in his far-off country.
Evangelists are not only those who address large crowds. Let us begin by being obedient, especially in where we go. The Lord will allow us also to be, at just the right moment, in the path of someone to whom we can preach Jesus.