9:13-15a "But Lord," exclaimed Ananias, "I've heard about the terrible things this man has done to the believers in Jerusalem! And we hear that he is authorized by the leading priests to arrest every believer in Damscus." But the Lord said, "Go and do what I say."
When I read this I try to put myself in Ananias's shoes. How would I respond to such a command? And the answer I get really challenges me. I feel like I would have went, just out of obedience but fully expecting to be arrested or worse! So there would still be a lack of faith playing in. I need to pray for faith that doesn't question the direction of God, EVER!
Here I am praying continuously for eyes and ears to see and understand what direction he wants me to go career wise and wouldn't you know I discover that I still need to be praying for the faith to listen and obey that direction, NO MATTER WHAT! And every direction, in every area, for that matter!
9:25 So during the night some of the other believers let him down in a large basket through an opening in the city wall.
This makes me wonder how big of a man Paul was and also how big of a basket it would take to stuff me in? I have this vision of the bottom falling out of a giant wicker basket and me dropping to the ground to be captured. Or one of those Longanberger (sp?) baskets that women pay insane amounts of money for! You know the ones they sit on a shelf and let the same batch of popouri(sp?) sit in for years and years! Okay this is really getting off subject! :)
9:26 When Saul arrived in Jerusalem he tried to meet with the believers, but they were all afraid of him.
I've read this many times but this is the first time I stopped to wonder how that affected Paul? Coming out of what he had just been through, this had to have killed him. He had to feel horrible. Here he had this transformation, experienced a miracle of healing, hears the voice of Jesus, catches fire for the Lord and is faced with the reality of what he had done! Not that I assume he hadn't already felt deep sorrow for what he had been doing because the Bible says that with genuine repentance comes sorrow; but he got to see what their fear looked like through new eyes! Eyes that saw what he had been putting them through! I bet this was a moment he never forgot!
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9:13-15a "But Lord," exclaimed Ananias, "I've heard about the terrible things this man has done to the believers in Jerusalem! And we hear that he is authorized by the leading priests to arrest every believer in Damscus."
But the Lord said, "Go and do what I say."
When I read this I try to put myself in Ananias's shoes. How would I respond to such a command? And the answer I get really challenges me. I feel like I would have went, just out of obedience but fully expecting to be arrested or worse! So there would still be a lack of faith playing in. I need to pray for faith that doesn't question the direction of God, EVER!
Here I am praying continuously for eyes and ears to see and understand what direction he wants me to go career wise and wouldn't you know I discover that I still need to be praying for the faith to listen and obey that direction, NO MATTER WHAT! And every direction, in every area, for that matter!
9:25 So during the night some of the other believers let him down in a large basket through an opening in the city wall.
This makes me wonder how big of a man Paul was and also how big of a basket it would take to stuff me in? I have this vision of the bottom falling out of a giant wicker basket and me dropping to the ground to be captured. Or one of those Longanberger (sp?) baskets that women pay insane amounts of money for! You know the ones they sit on a shelf and let the same batch of popouri(sp?) sit in for years and years! Okay this is really getting off subject! :)
9:26 When Saul arrived in Jerusalem he tried to meet with the believers, but they were all afraid of him.
I've read this many times but this is the first time I stopped to wonder how that affected Paul? Coming out of what he had just been through, this had to have killed him. He had to feel horrible. Here he had this transformation, experienced a miracle of healing, hears the voice of Jesus, catches fire for the Lord and is faced with the reality of what he had done! Not that I assume he hadn't already felt deep sorrow for what he had been doing because the Bible says that with genuine repentance comes sorrow; but he got to see what their fear looked like through new eyes! Eyes that saw what he had been putting them through! I bet this was a moment he never forgot!
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