We don't need ideal circumstances to be effective witnesses for Christ. Nor are God's purposes hindered by our problems.
Stephen was a powerful witness in a situation that was far from ideal. He was falsely accused and arrested (Acts 6:8-15). After he had witnessed at great length to the angry religious leaders, they rejected his words and took him out to be stoned (7:1-53).
That was the end of Stephen's witness, right? Wrong! His humble surrender to a martyr's death and his Christlike prayer that God would forgive his killers resulted in the greatest witness of Stephen's life (7:54-60).
But how does Stephen's martyrdom relate to our mundane lives? Joseph Aldrich, in his book Life-Style Evangelism, wrote, "When the non-Christian observes a believer responding to pressure and pain with a Spirit-controlled response, he is seeing God at work in human experience. Stephen's response to stoning caught the attention of a man named Saul!" Later, Saul became a zealous follower of Stephen's Lord (Acts 9--28).
Instead of praying for fewer difficulties so that we might witness better, let's pray that we might witness better through our difficulties. Who knows, another "Saul" may be watching. — Joanie Yoder
We often think that if life were smooth
We would a better witness be;
But God knows best--that faith mid trials
Can honor Him more powerfully. --Cetas
We can have our best witness in the worst of times.