Offering a ‘SUPERNATURAL’ RESPONSE to our PROBLEMS & PAIN!
November
11 Bible Reading: Acts Chapters 16-18
Offering a ‘SUPERNATURAL’ RESPONSE to our PROBLEMS & PAIN!
"Then the multitude rose up
together against them; and the magistrates tore off their clothes and commanded
them to be beaten with rods. And when they had laid many stripes on them, they threw them into prison, commanding the jailer to keep them
securely. Having received such a charge, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks. But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God,
and the prisoners were listening to them." (Acts 16:22-25)
After being
forbidden by the Holy Spirit to preach the word in Asia (v. 6) and Bithynia (v.
7), Apostle Paul got a ‘Macedonian Call’
through a vision in which a man from Macedonia pleaded to Paul to go there and
help them (v. 9). Taking this as a confirmation from God to redirect his
ministry, Paul started for Macedonia with Silas (v. 10), and reached Philippi
where God opened Lydia’s heart (vv. 12-15). In due time, Paul delivered a
demonized slave girl (vv. 16-18) and as a reward, both Paul and Silas were
beaten up badly with rods and thrown into the inner prison with shackles of
chains on their feet (vv. 19-24).
When Paul
and Silas experienced this injustice and mistreatment, instead of moaning and
grumbling, they displayed their faith in
God by praying and singing praises loudly at the midnight hour (v. 25).
Such unusual behavior opened the ears of the unbelieving prisoners and the jailer.
God intervened through a great earthquake, opening the prison doors, and
loosening everyone’s chains so that all the prisoners could escape immediately
(v. 26).
However,
Paul and Silas showed their integrity
by not trying to escape even when the opportunity was there. Even the other
prisoners were so moved that they did not escape. God then intervened
spiritually by opening the jailer’s heart so that in the wee hours of the
morning, he and his family got saved and baptized (vv. 27-32). It was due to Paul
and Silas’ supernatural response to their problem and pain that an entire
household came to know the Savior (vv. 33-34).
Let us
understand that sometimes our
disappointments, problems and pain may be God’s appointments to touch other people’s lives. God can turn our obstacles into wonderful opportunities to display His glory and
power. When we experience delays, changes in our well-laid plans and abrupt
re-directions, it is possible that God may be leading us to do something
different for Him in order to achieve His purposes through our lives. Our inconveniences may actually be God’s
divine appointments! Like Paul and Silas, let us offer supernatural responses to our problems & pain!
"And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose." (Romans 8:28)
