Scripture

But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were loosed. – Acts 16:25-26

Observation

Paul and Silas had been arrested, beaten and thrown in jail for casting a devil out of a local girl. These men had come to the city of Philippi to share the good news of the gospel with the people of this city. Instead of being received by the masses with open arms they were unjustly accused and unlawfully punished. What was their response? At midnight, after having been beaten and thrown in jail, they were praying and singing praise to God! Wow! What happened then? God shook the jail and their chains loosed. Not only were their chains loosed, but also the chains of every other prisoner in the place as well.

Application

How many times when I am experiencing difficulty do I respond like this? Not often enough. It is so easy to be caught in the trap of self-pity and complaining – even if only inwardly. The awesome thing to note here is that Paul and Silas’ response did not just matter to them but to all of the prisoners. When we, in the midst of difficult circumstances, choose to pray and sing praises to God instead of feeling sorry for ourselves, then we are giving God an opportunity to work in our lives and those around us. It could be that some people around us every day (a co-worker, a relative, a friend, a classmate, etc) is waiting for us to respond to God in faith. In that response God’s power is released to set them free. It could be that they just need to see someone that really believes, that really trusts God. That could be the nudge they need to push them over the edge into experiencing God for themselves.

Prayer

Jesus, thank You for the example of Paul and Silas. Thank You that, in the midst of such difficulty and mistreatment, they trusted You, leaving an example for us to follow. I will choose today to respond as they did – I will not complain or feel sorry for myself if I encounter challenges. I will pray and sing praises to You. As I do, I pray that You will allow my response of faith in You to set those around me free. Have Your way in me today! Amen.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, February 9th, 2010 at 7:01 PM and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.