Is it wrong to feel more led to witness, minister, and/or disciple some people more than others? I want all people I know and love to come to know Christ, but often feel led to a few specific people. Is it wrong to feel this way?
No, in fact it is quite natural to feel more of a burden for some than others. When one is first saved there is a strong desire to reach family members for Christ, as we see in John 1:40-41, “One of the two who heard John speak, and followed Him (Jesus), was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. He FIRST FOUND HIS OWN BROTHER SIMON, and said to him, ‘We have found the Messiah’ (which is translated, the Christ). And HE BROUGHT HIM TO JESUS” (NKJV). It is also quite natural to want to disciple believers in your home assembly or nearby churches. We see a good example of this in Colossians 4:12-13, “Epaphras, who is ONE OF YOU, a bondservant of Christ, greets you, ALWAYS LABORING FERVENTLY FOR YOU IN PRAYERS, that you may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God. For I bear him witness that HE HAS A GREAT ZEAL FOR YOU, AND FOR THOSE IN LAODICEA, AND THOSE IN HIERAPOLIS.”
Of course, there should also be (in a more general way) a burden for all the saints in all the churches. The Apostle Paul expressed this burden in 2nd Corinthians 11:28, “Besides the other things, what comes upon me daily: MY DEEP CONCERN FOR ALL THE CHURCHES.” We see this also in Ephesians 6:18, “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to the end with ALL PERSEVERANCE AND SUPPLICATION FOR ALL THE SAINTS.”
Yet even though Paul was able to pray “for all the saints,” he could only be in one place at a time to actually minister the Word to them. So, he too (like you) “often felt led to minister to specific people.” To illustrate, he wrote these words to the saints at Rome, “…without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers, making request if, by some means, now AT LAST I MAY FIND A WAY IN THE WILL OF GOD TO COME TO YOU. FOR I LONG TO SEE YOU, THAT I MAY IMPART TO YOU SOME SPIRITUAL GIFT, SO THAT YOU MAY BE ESTABLISHED” (Romans 1:10-11). He goes on to say in verse 13, “Now I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that I often planned to come to you (but was hindered until now), that I might have some fruit among you also, just as among the other Gentiles.” Paul had never met these believers so he was anxious to minister to them, yet he was “hindered” from coming.
We might well ask, “What was it that hindered Paul from coming?” I believe it was either: 1) the opposition of Satan; or 2) the Holy Spirit’s leading him elsewhere. Regarding the first, Paul wrote these words to the saints at Thessalonica, “Therefore we wanted to come to you—even I, Paul, time and again—but Satan hindered us” (1st Thessalonians 2:18). We don’t HOW Satan hindered him, but in some way (perhaps by persecutions or by afflicting him physically…see 2nd Corinthians 12:7) he prevented Paul from going there. As to the second, we have a very clear account of Paul being hindered by the Holy Spirit in Acts 16:6-7, “Now when they (Paul and Timothy) had gone through Phrygia and the region of Galatia, they were FORBIDDEN BY THE HOLY SPIRIT TO PREACH THE WORD IN ASIA. After they had come to Mysia, they tried to go into Bithynia, but THE SPIRIT DID NOT PERMIT THEM.” There is a valuable lesson in this for us, for though we may be burdened to witness to lost souls in a certain area, it may not be God’s will for us to do so and when this is the case the Spirit of God will not permit it. We don’t know exactly HOW the Spirit hindered them, but Paul was sensitive to His leading in both cases and in obedience he changed his plans. It is precious to see, as we read on, that when God “closes one door He opens another.” Thus we read in verses 9-10, “And a vision appeared to Paul in the night. A man of Macedonia stood and pleaded with him, saying, ‘Come over to Macedonia and help us.’ Now after he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go to Macedonia, concluding that the Lord had called us to preach the gospel to them.” In the rest of the chapter we see the blessed results of Paul’s labors in Macedonia, for the man in the vision was more than likely the “jailer at Philippi” who was saved through Paul’s labors and this was the beginning of the church at Philippi.
In closing, I would encourage you to pray earnestly so that you might know the Lord’s will as to who to minister to and when. We have a lovely example that teaches us this in Acts 13:1-4 which I will now quote, “Now in the church that was at Antioch there were certain prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon…Lucius…Manaen…and Saul. As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, THE HOLY SPIRIT SAID, ‘Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called t hem.’ Then, having fasted and prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them away. So, BEING SENT OUT BY THE HOLY SPIRIT, they went down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus.” (354.3) (DO)