DEVASTATING OPPORTUNITIES 

How should you respond if you feel like you’re being consistently bombarded by one devastating experience after another? In Acts 27, after barely surviving a shipwreck, Paul is bitten by a poisonous snake while warming himself by a fire. How does Paul react to this series of disasters? He calmly shakes off the snake and remains unshaken. His response shifts the onlookers’ perspective—from thinking he deserved to die, to believing God was protecting him. Though they overreact, Paul’s calm, trusting demeanor profoundly impacts them. His Christlike response leads to people being healed and set free. What happens to us is far less important than how we respond. Trusting in God will transform even the worst situation into an opportunity for His power to be revealed.

YOU ARE SOMEONE’S BEST HOPE

What if I said, you may be the best hope for someone else ever being saved? Would you think it was an overstatement? In Acts 25, Paul the Apostle was on a ship as a prisoner. When the ship is wrecked on a rocky shore, the soldiers plan to kill all the prisoners. The only reason they didn’t was because the centurion in charge wanted to spare Paul’s life. So, the only reason every prisoner on board was spared was because of Paul. One man’s life saved many others. Who needs your prayers, presence, and love to surrender their life to Jesus? The Bible says, “I looked for a man from among them who would repair the wall and stand in the gap before me on behalf of the land, so that I would not destroy it, but I found no one.” (Ezekiel 22:30)

WHEN LOSS IS GAIN

Perhaps the hardest thing we overcome in life is the grief of losing someone we love. The disciples grieved when Jesus was taken from them, yet Jesus rejoiced that the result of His death would be sending the Holy Spirit to fill each of their hearts, propelling them to a whole new level of spiritual authority and power. The “turning our morning into  dancing” proclamation in Psalm 30:11, is not a lofty concept but a promised experience if we can see our trials of life from God’s perspective. Sure, the “all things working together for the good” promise of God in Romans will take believing for the faith that moves mountains, but once embraced, it is a far better way to live. Jesus, help me to see my loss as gain, and my pain with purpose. Shake me fully awake to believe for all the good you died to give me.

PRESUMING TO KNOW GOD’S MIND

Many times, in our naiveness, we think we know what God is going to do because of what He’s already done. Presumption can be defined as “God will do a second thing because of how He did the first.” I’ve found that more often than not, God has a different plan. In John 11, when Jesus said, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep. But I am going there to awaken him,” the disciples thought that he was sleeping, and would wake up and get better. Yet, Lazarus was physically dead. The assumption of him waking up from a nap would have been significantly less of a miracle than Jesus raising him from the dead. The point? Don’t presume you know what God is doing. In the end, His plans are always infinitely better.

WHAT DO YOU REALLY WANT?

In John 5, Jesus asks a man who has been sick for 38 years if he wants to be healed. While some might see it as a silly question, it was necessary. Though most people would say, “Yes,” when asked if they wanted to be healed?” I’ve been stunned over the years to find, upon questioning, that many people are more attached to what’s making them sick than what would make them well. More often than not, when the level of commitment of both is offered, many people choose to live with their dysfunctional crutch rather than humbling themselves and yielding to Jesus and the Cross. As Joshua challenged, “…choose this day whom you will serve…” (Joshua 24:14) this question is always relevant. If it weren’t, then everyone in the world would follow Jesus.

WITH PERSECUTIONS

Generally speaking, the fine print in contracts prepares the signee for the unexpected and potentially unwanted. That’s why we should never be naïve about the fine print. So, in Mark 10, when Jesus promised those who left their families and homes for the sake of the gospel, a hundred times as much, we have to make sure we’ve read the fine print. At the end of the verse, He added,  “…with persecutions.” The Bible says it is an honor to suffer for the sake of the gospel. (Philippians 1:29) And that the, “…sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” (Romans 8:18) Though persecution is something to be aware of and prepare for, Psalm 72 says, “God only does wondrous things.” In eternity, the short-term burdens of persecution become long-term blessings. 

Embed HTML not available.