Corona Devo 904
Does life feel lately like you are in a holding pattern? Like, we want to move forward and upward and onward and toward whatever is next...and yet the delays of life, the red-tape of systems, the hindrances of this world are keeping us right here, where we no longer want to be...but still are.
Hang in. Hang on. Be patient in Christ.
God might be doing something in the wait...often He does. But I also think that sometimes--there is just a wait. God created our world, but people run amuck in it (and people think they run it) and so our processes, beliefs, ideals, sin, and systems are all affected by people, which can cause delays, waits, holding-patterns and interims. That can mean good times, or it can mean bad times, but always, it will mean time.
The apostle Paul was no stranger to time delays, and his waits and time-lapses are an encouragement as we read about them. Paul was on-fire for sharing the story and hope of Jesus with anyone that would listen. But many wanted him (and his truths about God) silenced, and so they did all that they could to deter, defer, and waylay him. We are not the first people to feel "held up" in our plans for what's-next in our lives, and even what we feel God wants us to be doing in our lives.
If we are feeling today like we are on another detour or even that we are at a complete stand-still...Hang in. Hang on. Be patient in Christ.
Five days later Ananias, the high priest, arrived with some of the Jewish elders and the lawyer Tertullus, to present their case against Paul to the governor. (2) When Paul was called in, Tertullus presented the charges against Paul... (5) We have found this man to be a troublemaker who is constantly stirring up riots among the Jews all over the world. He is a ringleader of the cult known as the Nazarenes... (8) You can find out the truth of our accusations by examining him yourself.” (9) Then the other Jews chimed in, declaring that everything Tertullus said was true.
(10) The governor then motioned for Paul to speak. Paul said... (12) "My accusers never found me arguing with anyone in the Temple, nor stirring up a riot in any synagogue or on the streets of the city. (13) These men cannot prove the things they accuse me of doing.
(14) “But I admit that I follow the Way, which they call a cult. I worship the God of our ancestors, and I firmly believe the Jewish law and everything written in the prophets...
(20) Ask these men here what crime the Jewish high council found me guilty of...
(22) At that point Felix, who was quite familiar with the Way, adjourned the hearing and said, “Wait until Lysias, the garrison commander, arrives. Then I will decide the case.” (23) He ordered an officer to keep Paul in custody but to give him some freedom and allow his friends to visit him and take care of his needs.
(24) A few days later Felix came back with his wife, Drusilla, who was Jewish. Sending for Paul, they listened as he told them about faith in Christ Jesus. (25) As he reasoned with them about righteousness and self-control and the coming day of judgment, Felix became frightened. “Go away for now,” he replied. “When it is more convenient, I’ll call for you again.” (26) He also hoped that Paul would bribe him, so he sent for him quite often and talked with him.
(27) After two years went by in this way, Felix was succeeded by Porcius Festus. And because Felix wanted to gain favor with the Jewish people, he left Paul in prison. ~Acts 24:1-2, 5, 8-10, 12-14, 20, 22-27
Talk about hanging in. Hanging on. And being patient in Christ...
Paul stayed focused and true to God's call on his life (to share about Him) even during the delays, and this "holding cell" lasted more than two years of Paul's life.
But on the night before Paul was transferred to this prison and this whole (years-long) charade and delay started, God (personally) encouraged Paul.
God visited Paul and said to keep witnessing for Him, both near and far, and the Lord personally encouraged Paul.
That night the Lord appeared to Paul and said, “Be encouraged, Paul. Just as you have been a witness to me here in Jerusalem, you must preach the Good News in Rome as well.” ~Acts 23:11
The Lord's call on our lives to share His hope and Truth is the same call that Paul felt.
And maybe just maybe Jesus has an idea of the frustration that we may be feeling in the process of life's processes. In the delay of today. In the hold-up of our dreams, or plans, or in the execution of them. And so maybe the Lord of the universe sends us a message to encourage us today. He appears to us via His Word anytime we open the Bible. Embrace and receive the Lord personally encouraging us today:
That night the Lord appeared to Paul and said, “Be encouraged, Paul. Just as you have been a witness to me here in Jerusalem, you must preach the Good News in Rome as well.” ~Acts 23:11
Keep being His witness. Here (for Paul it was Jerusalem), but also there, in the far away too (for Paul that was Rome). And be encouraged even in the holding cell between here and there.
Hang in. Hang on. Be patient in Christ.
Blessings,
sarah
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