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"Mattaniah the son of Micha, the son of Zabdi, the son of Asaph, the leader who began the thanksgiving with prayer."
(Nehemiah 11:17a)
You probably never heard of Mattaniah. His name means gift of Yahweh. Certainly, he is one of the unsung heroes in Scripture. He engaged in that which is most dear to God – prayer.
Next time someone asks you your favorite biblical character besides Jesus, tell him or her it is Mattaniah, and then explain why. Say he is not well known, but he was a man of prayer.
The Church today needs intercessors, those who will pay the price to pray, and it is a price to pay, for it is hard work. Warfare and serious intercessory prayer take time and commitment, and it takes someone who is willing to walk with God and be a watchman on the wall.
Roy Porter is one of those wonderful unsung heroes, not only for our country, but also for the cause of Christ. I was with Mr. Porter in Asia for two weeks during a mission trip years ago. He was 75 years old at the time, a wonderful gentleman, and a delight to be around. Porter accepted Christ as his Savior when he was 14 years old. He said he had no earthly father in the home, but God was his heavenly Father. He enlisted in the Marines when in World War II and served in the South Pacific from 1943-1946. He was wounded in June 1944 during the invasion of Guam. He continued to fight and serve as a Marine and fought in the invasion of Okinawa with the 6th Marine division in April 1945. In October of 1945, he went to China to be a part of those who accepted the surrender of the Japanese. While he served in China, he attended a German Lutheran Church and said he had great fellowship with God and fell in love with the Chinese people. Roy was married to Dorothy for 49.5 years. They had two sons and a daughter, and all their children served the Lord and worked in missions.
Porter worked for 37 years with Bell Systems as an engineer and then served in his local church full time as their Missions Director. He took biblical classes by extension courses through Moody Bible Institute. He said his life verse is Jeremiah 33:3, "Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know."
Roy Porter is an unsung hero both for his nation and moreover for his Lord whom he loved. One more thing about him is, when he got married, he and his wife wanted to tithe but just did not see how they could, so they decided to put their tithe in an empty fruit jar, and if God helped them pay their bills, then they would tithe. Porter said he did this for three months, and the Lord came through every time! There will be some large mansions in heaven for the Roy Porters of this world.
Many of you reading this devotional today are unsung heroes. You serve God and your Church faithfully, and often you are not noticed by others or recognized. Let me encourage you to be faithful to God, for one day, you will hear Jesus say, "Well done, good and faithful servant!" (Matthew 25:23)
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