The lady's bible study at church is doing this study entitled, "If you want to walk on water, you have to get out of the boat." The book takes a closer look at Jesus and Paul walking on water. It goes deeper than just reading the verses and asking questions that other people know the answers to. This study has captivated me.
It's about trusting God enough to actually get out of the boat.
The New Testamnet is a collection of some amazing things that Jesus did. The one thing that Jesus did those 33 years is walk on water. To me, I just can't picture it. The whole walking on water is big enough for God. He does the impossible. Walking on water sure is impossible. I have to make a confession. I've tried to walk on water. If you watch me after a storm, I like to walk through all of the puddles. And it's not the whole walking on water thing that intrigues me really. It's how unsteady water is. Jesus walked on unsteadiness.
I don't know if you're familiar with the story but if not you can find it in Matthew 14:22-33; Mark 6:45-52. Pretty much, Jesus sends his disciples in a boat ahead of him while he prays. The winds and water is extremely rough. The disciples are afraid of dieing. They're in mortal danger. When Jesus sees how battled the boat is, he goes out to them. When the disciples see him, they are scared. Jesus tells them not to be afraid. Peter says if it's you tell me to come to you. Jesus tells him to come. Peter walks out on the water. Something happens and Peter starts sinking. Jesus reaches down and picks him out of the water. He says something profound and the disciples believe. Jesus and Peter get into the boat and go to land.
Jesus says, "Don't be afraid. It is I."
I don't know about you, but if the storm is strong, the boat swaying, and I see a figure on the water. I'm going to be freaking out. No wonder the disciples thought Jesus was a ghost. They were so focused on the storm; they didn't think beyond it.
I realized from the boat and walking on water thing that the boat symbolizes comfort. It can be comfortable but not safe for you. Not what you need. The walking on water symbolizes growth. Peter choose to get out of his comfort zone and go where Jesus wanted him or where He was. Walking on water isn't something you can do on your own. I've tried walking on water puddles and nothing. Cement is still under my feet and my flip flop become slippery. It's no good. Even when Peter looked away, Jesus still reached out for him. When Peter sunk, he realized Jesus was still there. It takes a God who is paying attention to save you while you're sinking.
It's not easy to trust God, but after awhile you have to choose. You have to do more than just trust yourself. You're going to let yourself down too. And what's going to happen when you do? Only trusting yourself isn't safe. You're in the boat. God's on the water. I know it looking frightening and unclear. I'm there now wondering if I really should be doing this. He just wants you focused on Him. Because before you know it...you'll be walking on water because you stepped out of the boat.
Friday, July 23, 2010
Monday, July 12, 2010
This righteousness
So, I've been trying to wrap my mind around something...righteousness.
I'm sure you've heard it before. Righteousness. I've always known it as living right in the eyes of God. My whole thought on the subject changed when I started listening to a podcast series found on iTunes by Pastor Willie George called "Why Worry." It's a pretty lengthy series but it's so good. When I first started listening, I thought it would be about worrying and why you shouldn't...you know the normal stuff.
But the series is not the normal stuff, it's about why we worry. It's because we can't accept the righteousness God gave us. Which is problematic. The definition of righteousness says nothing about God giving it to us.
Examples:
Righteousness according to my Bible's glossary:
The state of being in right relationship with God, particularly through faith in Jesus Christ and obedience to God's Word, a positive evaluation of character, actions and attitudes in relation to God's perfect standard with God's help, doing what is right according to his standard.
Righteousness according to dictionary.com:
1. The quality or state of being righteous
2. Righteous conduct
3. The quality or state of being just or rightful.
Righteous is...
1. characterized by uprightness or morality
2. morally right or justifiable
3. acting in an upright, moral way
Is it possible that we define righteousness differently than what God has intended? I'm doing a bible study to figure out what righteousness is as it is displayed in the Bible.
I'll keep you updated.
I'm sure you've heard it before. Righteousness. I've always known it as living right in the eyes of God. My whole thought on the subject changed when I started listening to a podcast series found on iTunes by Pastor Willie George called "Why Worry." It's a pretty lengthy series but it's so good. When I first started listening, I thought it would be about worrying and why you shouldn't...you know the normal stuff.
But the series is not the normal stuff, it's about why we worry. It's because we can't accept the righteousness God gave us. Which is problematic. The definition of righteousness says nothing about God giving it to us.
Examples:
Righteousness according to my Bible's glossary:
The state of being in right relationship with God, particularly through faith in Jesus Christ and obedience to God's Word, a positive evaluation of character, actions and attitudes in relation to God's perfect standard with God's help, doing what is right according to his standard.
Righteousness according to dictionary.com:
1. The quality or state of being righteous
2. Righteous conduct
3. The quality or state of being just or rightful.
Righteous is...
1. characterized by uprightness or morality
2. morally right or justifiable
3. acting in an upright, moral way
Is it possible that we define righteousness differently than what God has intended? I'm doing a bible study to figure out what righteousness is as it is displayed in the Bible.
I'll keep you updated.
Thursday, May 20, 2010
This remembering
I've started a new book. Actually it's a book that I started reading when I was home for Christmas, but I wasn't able to finish the whole book. I was literally reading on the way to the airport. You can't take a library book to a different state. It just doesn't work out. :)
I'm reading "Kiss" by Ted Dekker and Erin Healy. Dekker is by far my favorite author. There's something about his writing that just pulls you in and keeps you attached. I'm only on page 135 but it's been great remembering the book. It's about a girl named Shauna who wakes up after six weeks in a coma. She and her brother were involved in a tragic car crash that left her beloved brother half the man he used to be. She wakes up not being able to remember the last six months. Her life is surrounded by people who hate her for the car accident, who hate her for what she did to her brother.
As she tries to remember, she finds herself dreaming of other people's experiences. You'll have to read the book to under that last sentence. But there is a conversation she has with her maid. It is important to note that her maid, Khai, had her daughter taken from her and sold. She's been looking for her ever since. Here it is below:
"Khai shook her head and handed a hot cup of tea to Shauna, then took a seat at the window. "My daughter turns fifteen today, if she is still alive," Khai said. "Sometimes I wonder if I would know her if I saw her. I wonder who she looks like, and what her voice sound like. I wonder if she remembers any impressions of me."
Shauna closed her eyes. She was not in the frame of mind to engage Khai on such an intense topic.
"In a way," Khai said, "she and I don't know each other at all. But there is a part of me that senses we have never stopped knowing each other, that we have never forgotten each other." She nodded, contemplative. "Yes, I'm pretty sure I would know her."
"That's nice."
"Can I tell you a story?"
Shauna let her eyes say yes even though her mind said no.
"When my husband, Chuan, took our daughter away, people told me to forget her. I must get on with my life, they said, there was nothing I could do. Chuan returned to our little house with his dirty money and said we would have more children. He more than anyone wanted me to forget. Forget, forget!
"For a while I considered this. The pain was so deep and so raw. There were days I would have died just to forget. The problem was, I couldn't figure out how to get her out of my mind. How do you kill that kind of pain?"
"If you're going to tell me that my amnesia is a mercy-"
Khai held up her hand. "No. Wait. I had heard of a missionary in our village who was said to help people forget the darkness of their past. Some said he was a miracle worker who knew how to cover up everything terrible that followed you like a shadow. His God could cut it off and replace it with hope. I went to this man thinking he could help me to separate from my shadow."
"Peter Pan magic," Shauna observed.
"Didn't you ever wonder why that boy always wanted his shadow reattached?"
This conversation was baffling Shauna.
"But the missionary was no magician," Khai said. "When I told him and his wife what I wanted, they should have laughed at me, but they didn't. Instead they told me that my past was not something God wanted to amputate. He wanted to cast a new light on it so that it would become useful to him and to others. If I tried to deny that shadow in my life, the truth of it would be useful to no one." pages 130 - 131)
Skipping ahead to not spoil the book.
Continued
"You can't possibly miss that kind of pain."
"Even our worst memories are valuable." (page 132)
And more:
"Why have you told me all this?" she (Shauna) asked.
"Because Wayne wants you to forget your pain. You want to forget your pain. I mean to tell you that doing that will only cause you more harm."
"I don't want to forget my pain, Khai. I want to live. Something happened to me that someone else doesn't want me to remember."
"Of course they don't! Listen to me. The only things worth forgetting are the offenses others have caused us. Those will distract you from living. But if someone tells you to forget your own history, you can expect he has his own agenda in mind. His own selfish or his own intolerance for pain. Or something far more harmful."
"I haven't forgotten anything willingly."
"Then you will have to work harder than the average person to hold on to what is true. If you forget, Shauna, your suffering will rule you instead of free you." (page 132-33).
There is always something appealing about forgetting. Even in personal experience, I thought forgetting would help me but the obsession with forgetting only hurt me more because that masked the pain I thought was healing. The only thing that really helped me was remembering. Because remembering causes the pain to be real and when that pain is real, you can move on. It's not an easy journey but it's a journey worth taking. I'd rather never return to the person or place I was four years ago. Sometimes it takes God remembering for you, for you to forgive (not forget) and move on.
I learned that forgetting wasn't healthy. I also learned that always remembering wasn't either. I learned to remember without it taking my breath away. I learned that remembering and telling your friends can actually bind that friendship. The friends I have made at ORU have similar experiences. They understand me. It's nice because I don't have to reintroduce me and all my baggage to them. They already know. Remembering your pain could actually help someone else heal from theirs. Holding back only hurts you. Ted Dekker even says it his book. So it has to be true. :)
I'm reading "Kiss" by Ted Dekker and Erin Healy. Dekker is by far my favorite author. There's something about his writing that just pulls you in and keeps you attached. I'm only on page 135 but it's been great remembering the book. It's about a girl named Shauna who wakes up after six weeks in a coma. She and her brother were involved in a tragic car crash that left her beloved brother half the man he used to be. She wakes up not being able to remember the last six months. Her life is surrounded by people who hate her for the car accident, who hate her for what she did to her brother.
As she tries to remember, she finds herself dreaming of other people's experiences. You'll have to read the book to under that last sentence. But there is a conversation she has with her maid. It is important to note that her maid, Khai, had her daughter taken from her and sold. She's been looking for her ever since. Here it is below:
"Khai shook her head and handed a hot cup of tea to Shauna, then took a seat at the window. "My daughter turns fifteen today, if she is still alive," Khai said. "Sometimes I wonder if I would know her if I saw her. I wonder who she looks like, and what her voice sound like. I wonder if she remembers any impressions of me."
Shauna closed her eyes. She was not in the frame of mind to engage Khai on such an intense topic.
"In a way," Khai said, "she and I don't know each other at all. But there is a part of me that senses we have never stopped knowing each other, that we have never forgotten each other." She nodded, contemplative. "Yes, I'm pretty sure I would know her."
"That's nice."
"Can I tell you a story?"
Shauna let her eyes say yes even though her mind said no.
"When my husband, Chuan, took our daughter away, people told me to forget her. I must get on with my life, they said, there was nothing I could do. Chuan returned to our little house with his dirty money and said we would have more children. He more than anyone wanted me to forget. Forget, forget!
"For a while I considered this. The pain was so deep and so raw. There were days I would have died just to forget. The problem was, I couldn't figure out how to get her out of my mind. How do you kill that kind of pain?"
"If you're going to tell me that my amnesia is a mercy-"
Khai held up her hand. "No. Wait. I had heard of a missionary in our village who was said to help people forget the darkness of their past. Some said he was a miracle worker who knew how to cover up everything terrible that followed you like a shadow. His God could cut it off and replace it with hope. I went to this man thinking he could help me to separate from my shadow."
"Peter Pan magic," Shauna observed.
"Didn't you ever wonder why that boy always wanted his shadow reattached?"
This conversation was baffling Shauna.
"But the missionary was no magician," Khai said. "When I told him and his wife what I wanted, they should have laughed at me, but they didn't. Instead they told me that my past was not something God wanted to amputate. He wanted to cast a new light on it so that it would become useful to him and to others. If I tried to deny that shadow in my life, the truth of it would be useful to no one." pages 130 - 131)
Skipping ahead to not spoil the book.
Continued
"You can't possibly miss that kind of pain."
"Even our worst memories are valuable." (page 132)
And more:
"Why have you told me all this?" she (Shauna) asked.
"Because Wayne wants you to forget your pain. You want to forget your pain. I mean to tell you that doing that will only cause you more harm."
"I don't want to forget my pain, Khai. I want to live. Something happened to me that someone else doesn't want me to remember."
"Of course they don't! Listen to me. The only things worth forgetting are the offenses others have caused us. Those will distract you from living. But if someone tells you to forget your own history, you can expect he has his own agenda in mind. His own selfish or his own intolerance for pain. Or something far more harmful."
"I haven't forgotten anything willingly."
"Then you will have to work harder than the average person to hold on to what is true. If you forget, Shauna, your suffering will rule you instead of free you." (page 132-33).
There is always something appealing about forgetting. Even in personal experience, I thought forgetting would help me but the obsession with forgetting only hurt me more because that masked the pain I thought was healing. The only thing that really helped me was remembering. Because remembering causes the pain to be real and when that pain is real, you can move on. It's not an easy journey but it's a journey worth taking. I'd rather never return to the person or place I was four years ago. Sometimes it takes God remembering for you, for you to forgive (not forget) and move on.
I learned that forgetting wasn't healthy. I also learned that always remembering wasn't either. I learned to remember without it taking my breath away. I learned that remembering and telling your friends can actually bind that friendship. The friends I have made at ORU have similar experiences. They understand me. It's nice because I don't have to reintroduce me and all my baggage to them. They already know. Remembering your pain could actually help someone else heal from theirs. Holding back only hurts you. Ted Dekker even says it his book. So it has to be true. :)
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Life after graduating...
Life after graduation feels the same it does before you've finished. The only difference is that I'm not as busy and I've just been sitting around doing nothing. hehe Actually, that's not true. I have more breathing time than in the last year.
I'm a college graduate. Weird. I mean, I knew it was going to happen, but it's already passed. It's weird.
I don't feel like I've graduated. It doesn't help that I'm still at school for the summer. I think when I actually find a real job and move into a house with my roommates it'll actually hit me. Just hopefully not too hard.
I've been doing a lot more leisure reading now that I've had the time. I picked up several of Jodi Picoult's books. I've read Tenth Circle and just finished Handle with Care. I have to say I've never read a book that it is as complex as these two. I've never wanted to slap so many characters. Thing I love about this author is that she's not afraid to deal with tough subjects. If you're going to pick up these books, I will say she deals with issues like rape, mental and physical disabilities, eating disorder, and so much more. She's a great writer. She's extremely talents.
Out of the two I've read, Tenth Circle is the best.
I'm a college graduate. Weird. I mean, I knew it was going to happen, but it's already passed. It's weird.
I don't feel like I've graduated. It doesn't help that I'm still at school for the summer. I think when I actually find a real job and move into a house with my roommates it'll actually hit me. Just hopefully not too hard.
I've been doing a lot more leisure reading now that I've had the time. I picked up several of Jodi Picoult's books. I've read Tenth Circle and just finished Handle with Care. I have to say I've never read a book that it is as complex as these two. I've never wanted to slap so many characters. Thing I love about this author is that she's not afraid to deal with tough subjects. If you're going to pick up these books, I will say she deals with issues like rape, mental and physical disabilities, eating disorder, and so much more. She's a great writer. She's extremely talents.
Out of the two I've read, Tenth Circle is the best.
Monday, April 12, 2010
This lonely place
One of my really close friends just asked me to come in and talk to her and it seems the scales have just been removed from her eyes.
She's at the point where God has stripped her of all the important things in her life. Many of her friends have left or have seemed to abandoned her. She's been gifted with the ability to act and sing, but she hasn't had any luck getting into showcase or other activities/plays. She told me awhile ago that her friends were pretty much her family. She invests so much into her family and her talents.
With all of these stripped away, she realizes that she has a lot of time alone and she doesn't like it. She decided to look up lonely in the Bible and this verse caught her eye, "Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed" (Luke 5:16). She realized what God has been trying to show her for the last couple years. Her communication with God was dwindled.
I know her story is relevant to all of us. Sometimes we get so caught up in this world and our present troubles that we forget about the One who made the world and us. He just wants us. He needs us.
Jesus went to a quiet place often to talk with God. Sometimes the best thing to do in this world is just to go to our Father and talk to Him. So many of our troubles can be easily taken care of by just going to the Father and letting Him take care of our worrying so that we can think clear. Go to the Father. Use those lonely times for good.
She's at the point where God has stripped her of all the important things in her life. Many of her friends have left or have seemed to abandoned her. She's been gifted with the ability to act and sing, but she hasn't had any luck getting into showcase or other activities/plays. She told me awhile ago that her friends were pretty much her family. She invests so much into her family and her talents.
With all of these stripped away, she realizes that she has a lot of time alone and she doesn't like it. She decided to look up lonely in the Bible and this verse caught her eye, "Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed" (Luke 5:16). She realized what God has been trying to show her for the last couple years. Her communication with God was dwindled.
I know her story is relevant to all of us. Sometimes we get so caught up in this world and our present troubles that we forget about the One who made the world and us. He just wants us. He needs us.
Jesus went to a quiet place often to talk with God. Sometimes the best thing to do in this world is just to go to our Father and talk to Him. So many of our troubles can be easily taken care of by just going to the Father and letting Him take care of our worrying so that we can think clear. Go to the Father. Use those lonely times for good.
Sunday, April 11, 2010
This me
I feel like, after Empowerment21, that the good parts of the old and the new me have finally met. It's weird to say, but I feel great. Maybe it's because I've been in a three day conference. That a whole lot of Jesus. :) More to come about the conference later.
Sunday, April 4, 2010
This resurrection
As you all know, today is Easter Sunday.
I'm sure you've heard the account of Christ's resurrection every Easter Sunday. Today at church, Doxa, my pastor took a different approach to the resurrection of Christ. Instead of going through the Gospels. Jimmy Shaw, my pastor, does church a little different than most. He preaches first, communion is done every Sunday, worship, and than offering. He also speaks through a book of the Bible.
Anyway, back to the sermon, I'm not sure if he planned it this way, but he taught from Acts 9, Saul's conversion. It fell completely right with the Easter Sunday. I've included the chapter below, so that you understand the context.
I had several revelations at church today (Don't you love when God does that, especially through your pastor. :) It always helps.) The first was that Saul was persecuting Christians as a way to get closer to God. For some reason I hadn't connected the dots that Saul was working for the high priest and that Saul actually believed in GOD! Saul wasn't killing the apostles because he hated them, well maybe he did hate them...he just didn't believe in resurrection of Christ. He believed in God but not the Son.
If you don't know the context, Saul was pretty much killing Christians. In this chapter, Christ confronts him head on, blinding him for several days, and sends Ananias to him to restore Saul's sight. In the end, Saul aka Paul ends up being a full-on-crazy apostle for Christ.
Anyway, when Saul encounters Christ on the road to Damascus, Jesus asks, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?" Notice Saul's response, "Who are you, Lord?" I'm sure Saul was probably freaking out a little but he recognized God.
Now I ask, do we? In the flow of our busy days, do we recognize the sovereign King? Do we see Him in everyone that we meet and everything that we do? I know this isn't in context with what was being said in Acts, but do we?
Further on, as Saul gets his sight back and starts to preach in Damascus and Jerusalem, you notice in verses 20 - 31, that he has no people. The people who he persecuted before his redemption are afraid of him and his previous employers want to kill him. He is a man without a people. All of this change happens only in a matter of days.
And think, Saul's conversion made such an impact on him that he didn't waver from the path he had set on. There's no way to know what Saul was thinking or doing specially during this time, but how would you have responded? Could you take the dramatic change of friends? If you think about it, Saul was a very favored man, in some people's eyes.
Think of when you first become a Christan, could you have dealt with everything Saul went through?
Can you deal with it now?
It wasn't the blinding light or the blindness that changed Saul's mind. It was the resurrection of Christ. Saul's basic change was the fact that he now believed that Jesus was raised from the dead.
It's important to remember that the resurrection isn't a one day thing. If you think about it, the resurrection is what changed Saul.
Has it changed you today?
Acts 9:1-31 NIV (Provided by Biblegateway.com)
Saul's Conversion
1Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord's disciples. He went to the high priest 2and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. 3As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?"
5"Who are you, Lord?" Saul asked.
"I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting," he replied. 6"Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do."
7The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone. 8Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. 9For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.
10In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, "Ananias!"
"Yes, Lord," he answered.
11The Lord told him, "Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. 12In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight."
13"Lord," Ananias answered, "I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your saints in Jerusalem. 14And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name."
15But the Lord said to Ananias, "Go! This man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel. 16I will show him how much he must suffer for my name."
17Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, "Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit." 18Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul's eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, 19and after taking some food, he regained his strength.
Saul in Damascus and Jerusalem
Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus. 20At once he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God. 21All those who heard him were astonished and asked, "Isn't he the man who raised havoc in Jerusalem among those who call on this name? And hasn't he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?" 22Yet Saul grew more and more powerful and baffled the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Christ.[a]
23After many days had gone by, the Jews conspired to kill him, 24but Saul learned of their plan. Day and night they kept close watch on the city gates in order to kill him. 25But his followers took him by night and lowered him in a basket through an opening in the wall.
26When he came to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he really was a disciple. 27But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. He told them how Saul on his journey had seen the Lord and that the Lord had spoken to him, and how in Damascus he had preached fearlessly in the name of Jesus. 28So Saul stayed with them and moved about freely in Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the Lord. 29He talked and debated with the Grecian Jews, but they tried to kill him. 30When the brothers learned of this, they took him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus.
31Then the church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria enjoyed a time of peace. It was strengthened; and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it grew in numbers, living in the fear of the Lord.
I'm sure you've heard the account of Christ's resurrection every Easter Sunday. Today at church, Doxa, my pastor took a different approach to the resurrection of Christ. Instead of going through the Gospels. Jimmy Shaw, my pastor, does church a little different than most. He preaches first, communion is done every Sunday, worship, and than offering. He also speaks through a book of the Bible.
Anyway, back to the sermon, I'm not sure if he planned it this way, but he taught from Acts 9, Saul's conversion. It fell completely right with the Easter Sunday. I've included the chapter below, so that you understand the context.
I had several revelations at church today (Don't you love when God does that, especially through your pastor. :) It always helps.) The first was that Saul was persecuting Christians as a way to get closer to God. For some reason I hadn't connected the dots that Saul was working for the high priest and that Saul actually believed in GOD! Saul wasn't killing the apostles because he hated them, well maybe he did hate them...he just didn't believe in resurrection of Christ. He believed in God but not the Son.
If you don't know the context, Saul was pretty much killing Christians. In this chapter, Christ confronts him head on, blinding him for several days, and sends Ananias to him to restore Saul's sight. In the end, Saul aka Paul ends up being a full-on-crazy apostle for Christ.
Anyway, when Saul encounters Christ on the road to Damascus, Jesus asks, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?" Notice Saul's response, "Who are you, Lord?" I'm sure Saul was probably freaking out a little but he recognized God.
Now I ask, do we? In the flow of our busy days, do we recognize the sovereign King? Do we see Him in everyone that we meet and everything that we do? I know this isn't in context with what was being said in Acts, but do we?
Further on, as Saul gets his sight back and starts to preach in Damascus and Jerusalem, you notice in verses 20 - 31, that he has no people. The people who he persecuted before his redemption are afraid of him and his previous employers want to kill him. He is a man without a people. All of this change happens only in a matter of days.
And think, Saul's conversion made such an impact on him that he didn't waver from the path he had set on. There's no way to know what Saul was thinking or doing specially during this time, but how would you have responded? Could you take the dramatic change of friends? If you think about it, Saul was a very favored man, in some people's eyes.
Think of when you first become a Christan, could you have dealt with everything Saul went through?
Can you deal with it now?
It wasn't the blinding light or the blindness that changed Saul's mind. It was the resurrection of Christ. Saul's basic change was the fact that he now believed that Jesus was raised from the dead.
It's important to remember that the resurrection isn't a one day thing. If you think about it, the resurrection is what changed Saul.
Has it changed you today?
Acts 9:1-31 NIV (Provided by Biblegateway.com)
Saul's Conversion
1Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord's disciples. He went to the high priest 2and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. 3As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?"
5"Who are you, Lord?" Saul asked.
"I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting," he replied. 6"Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do."
7The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone. 8Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. 9For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.
10In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, "Ananias!"
"Yes, Lord," he answered.
11The Lord told him, "Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. 12In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight."
13"Lord," Ananias answered, "I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your saints in Jerusalem. 14And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name."
15But the Lord said to Ananias, "Go! This man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel. 16I will show him how much he must suffer for my name."
17Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, "Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit." 18Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul's eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, 19and after taking some food, he regained his strength.
Saul in Damascus and Jerusalem
Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus. 20At once he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God. 21All those who heard him were astonished and asked, "Isn't he the man who raised havoc in Jerusalem among those who call on this name? And hasn't he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?" 22Yet Saul grew more and more powerful and baffled the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Christ.[a]
23After many days had gone by, the Jews conspired to kill him, 24but Saul learned of their plan. Day and night they kept close watch on the city gates in order to kill him. 25But his followers took him by night and lowered him in a basket through an opening in the wall.
26When he came to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he really was a disciple. 27But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. He told them how Saul on his journey had seen the Lord and that the Lord had spoken to him, and how in Damascus he had preached fearlessly in the name of Jesus. 28So Saul stayed with them and moved about freely in Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the Lord. 29He talked and debated with the Grecian Jews, but they tried to kill him. 30When the brothers learned of this, they took him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus.
31Then the church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria enjoyed a time of peace. It was strengthened; and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it grew in numbers, living in the fear of the Lord.
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