Chapter 16 - Normal
Today’s Journey Through Acts excerpt is:
Through your time in Acts, you are probably picking up on some recurring themes. It is amazing to watch the early disciples as they approached their ministry and their world in ways that we don't even consider. Their lives were centered around the proclamation of the gospel—at any cost. Radical commitment was completely normal. In the day and age in which we live, merely attending Sunday services consistently at one's church is deemed going above and beyond.
We’d do well to re-embrace some of the norms found in the early church. Prayer and fasting were normal. Dedication to the discipleship process was normal. Supporting missionaries and being on mission were normal. Specifically looking at Acts 16, a story unfolds that demonstrates that commitment to these normal practices sets the stage for truly supernatural experiences.
As Paul and Silas’s missionary journey unfolds in Macedonia, they find themselves imprisoned - again. In those moments, Paul and Silas did what was normal, even in an abnormal situation. Having been beaten and chained to the floor of the inner prison, they worshiped God. While they worshiped, the ground began to shake, the chains fell off, and the doors of the prison swung open! At midnight, revival fell in the jailhouse! On top of that, the first conversion was the jailer himself.
That night, Paul and Silas had every reason not to worship. They were tired. They had been beaten. They were chained to the floor of a filthy prison cell. For them, the reason to worship outweighed all of the reasons to remain silent—namely, God still deserved to be worshiped.
Their worship was not situationally dependent; worship was simply their normal response. What about you? Is your default response to worship God? Maybe you've developed the habit of complaining and being critical every time the situation is uncomfortable. If what we see in Acts 16 is true, when believers worship, people notice, chains break, and prisons are opened. Maybe Proverbs 18:21 is true in saying that death and life are in the power of the tongue.
Reflect on the journey: You can probably think of countless situations in your life to be discouraged over. Take some time today to write down some things that you are grateful for. Recall the times in your life when God was faithful when it seemed unlikely.
Through your prayer time today: Honor the Lord by worshiping Him today, regardless of the challenges that you are facing. Profess to Him that He is still worthy to be adored, even in the hard times.
