Now What? (Part 1)
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Introduction:
Introduction:
I want to welcome you again this morning.
First, to those joining us online, we are so thankful for our online technology that allows you to be a part of our church family today.
I also want to welcome those who may be joining us for the first time today. I hope your time with us today is encouraging and helpful, and I look forward to meeting you.
I would also say if you are new to our church today, it would be helpful for you to know that we practice a form of preaching called “Expository Preaching”.
What that means, is we believe the Bible is best taught by taking books of the Bible and then breaking them down from beginning to end, chapter by chapter, verse by verse. Our goal, to better understand not only what God’s Word says, but what it means in our lives today.
Over the past couple of years we’ve been doing that through the NT book of Acts.
With that said, if you haven’t been with us I would encourage you to go online to http://www.mcf.life or to our Facebook page where you can watch previous messages leading up to today.
Today however we are going to begin part one of a two part series finale on the book of Acts. Which means, next Sunday will be our last Sunday in the Acts series.
That being said, make sure you are here next week so that in 20 years, when your kids ask you, “Where you were when Pastor Brad finished the book of Acts?”, you can say, “I was there!”.
As we come back to this final chapter today, we come on the tail end of Paul’s journey to Rome.
A journey that started over 2 years prior to his arrival in Rome.
A journey that has been full of near death experiences, imprisonment, false accusations, trials, storms, a shipwreck, a viper bite, faith, and miracles. Who said the Christian life was boring, right?
But now Paul’s journey to Rome is coming to a conclusion as Paul boards the final ship that will take him to his destination point. Luke tells us about it beginning in verse 11:
11 After three months we set sail in a ship that had wintered in the island, a ship of Alexandria, with the twin gods as a figurehead. 12 Putting in at Syracuse, we stayed there for three days. 13 And from there we made a circuit and arrived at Rhegium. And after one day a south wind sprang up, and on the second day we came to Puteoli. 14 There we found brothers and were invited to stay with them for seven days. And so we came to Rome.
Luke says that following the shipwreck on the island of Malta, three months pass as they wait out the winter season until they can safely sail again.
We see it on the map as they now leave Malta sailing North with a stop at Syracuse for three days, and then another stop at Rhegium for one day, followed by a final couple days of sailing as they came to Puteoli.
And this is where the sea voyage ends as Paul and his companions finish out their journey and arrive in Rome by land.
And now Paul has finally arrived.
Which leads us to a quesiton that I think is important we ask at this point in Paul’s journey. And the question is, “Now what?”
And what I mean by that is, “Now that Paul has arrived at his destination point, what’s next? What will Paul now do?”
I think that’s a great question, because the fact is, as you and I journey on the path God has for us, at some point we will reach a destination point. The place that God has been leading us to.
And when I say destination point, I’m not just talking about one particular destination point.
Because the truth is, there will be multiple destination points that God leads you to on your journey of faith.
For example, over the past 22 years, while Denise and I have had several destination points, we’ve had three major destination stops that have made up most of our ministry life and journey of faith.
The first took place in 1999 as God led us from Colby, Kansas to Springfield, MO where I would attend Bible College and go on staff at a large church as an Adult Ministries Pastor.
The second took place in 2010 as God led us out of Springfield to Mt. Pocono, PA where I would serve at another great church as an Executive Pastor.
And the third one took place in 2012 as God led us out of Mt. Pocono and here to Marysville Christian Fellowship where I serve as the Lead Pastor.
And while Denise and I have no plans to leave Marysville, there’s a possibility that there will be future destination points in our journey before we reach our final destination point.
And when I say final destination point, I’m talking about the point where we will finish out our days here on earth before going to be with the Lord.
Now, you might be thinking, “Wow pastor, that’s kind of morbid.”
Really, it’s not. Because for the Christian that’s the ultimate destination point to look forward too. To the moment when we take our last breath and we hear the Lord say to us:
21 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’
Paul actually looked forward to this day. He put it like this in Philippians 1:
22 If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. 23 I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. 24 But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account.
Paul basically says, “My desire is to go to heaven, but I know that God is not done with me here yet. That he has more destination points for me.”
All that to say, we all have destination points that God is leading us to with the understanding that one day we will reach that final destination point.
I bring this up, for two reasons:
First, because God has destination points for you.
Places God is leading you too.
Places that He has prepared for you.
People He wants you to minister too.
Opportunities He wants you to engage in.
Places where He is going to use you to do extraordinary things for Him.
Now, some might ask, “Ok pastor, that’s great. But how do I know if I’m at a destination point?”
Great question. And while there will be many indicators, the major points often come following a major storm or trial you’ve just been through.
For example:
It comes as you sail out of the storm of divorce.
It comes as you sail out of the storm of personal loss.
It comes as the storms of anxiety and depression begin to die down.
It comes as the storm of sickness comes to an end.
It comes as the marriage begins to find hope again.
Why then? Typically because that’s when you’re the strongest.
Why? Because the storm has toughened you, seasoned you, equipped you, and prepared you for where God has led you. And now you’re ready to do what He’s called you to do.
You’re ready to help somebody else walk through a loss because you’ve been through a loss.
You’re ready to encourage somebody in their marriage because your marriage has been reconciled.
You’re ready to help somebody overcome anxiety and depression because by God’s help you’ve overcome it.
You see how that works?
Secondly, I bring this up because as we come back to Acts 28, Paul has not only reached one of his destination points, but his final destination point.
Which means, Rome will be where Paul finishes out his days on earth before going to be with the Lord.
The question then is, “What do those days look like?”
And the reason that’s such an important question, is because the answer to that quesiton is the same regardless of the destination point.
In other words, what Paul does now is what he would do whether it was his final destination point or not.
How do we know that?
Well, for one, Paul doesn’t know for certain this is his final destination point.
In fact, according to Paul, Paul had plans beyond Rome.
We see this in his letter to the church in Rome that he wrote when was in the city of Corinth. Look at what he says in Romans 15:
24 I hope to see you in passing as I go to Spain, and to be helped on my journey there by you, once I have enjoyed your company for a while.
In this passage Paul tells the church in Rome that he hopes to visit them one day, and then from there head on to Spain.
Well, that day has come. He’s in Rome. Probably not in the way he thought he would be. But here he is.
And so based on what he’s said previously, there’s a good chance he still thinks Spain may be in his future.
But regardless of that, Paul is going to do what he always does when he arrives at a destination point.
And that’s important for us, because what Paul now does serves as a model for us. A model of what we should do when we reach the place or point God has led us to.
So, what does he do?
What I want to suggest to you is that he has two specific focuses, one of a more inward personal nature and the second of a more outward nature.
Today we are going to look at the more inward personal focus. And it’s an important focus because it’s what prepares us to minister in the place God has led us to.
So, with that as our basis, today we are going to look at Paul’s first focus as he sails out of the storms and arrives at his destination point. And it’s a focus that consists of three aspects that are all connected.
And so to get us started, In want to introduce you to the first aspect of Paul’s inward focus. Because as he approaches his destination point:
Aspect #1 - Paul takes time to thank God.
We see this in ver 14 as Luke writes:
Acts 28:14–15 (ESV)
14 There we found brothers and were invited to stay with them for seven days. And so we came to Rome. 15 And the brothers there, when they heard about us, came as far as the Forum of Appius and Three Taverns to meet us. On seeing them, Paul thanked God...
In this passage Luke begins to paint a picture of what Paul’s arrival in Rome looked like. And according to Luke, it started positively. Because Luke says as they
make the final trek by land to Rome, along the way they come across a group of fellow Christians who showed them hospitality. And Luke says upon seeing them, Paul’s first response was to thank God.
Another way to say that is that he began to praise God.
You might ask, “Why did he thank and what did he praise God for?”
Well, the why is easy. He gave thanks to God because God had safely brought him to his destination point.
Which then leads us to what he praised God for.
And while we can only speculate, based on Paul’s other writings we can confidently say he probably thanked and praised God for at least three things:
First, Paul thanked God for the provision God had provided on the journey.
In Ephesians 1 Paul writes:
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places,
In this passage Paul recognizes that all the blessings we have in our life come from God. And so he praises him for it.
I think this is part of what motivates Paul to begin to praise God in this moment as he experiences the hospitality of these Christian brothers and is reminded of how God has blessed them along the way. Of how God has provided everything they needed to reach Rome. That at every twist and turn provision has been given.
Second, Paul thanked God for the comfort and encouragement God had provided on the journey.
In 2 Corinthians 1 Paul writes:
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort,
In this passage Paul recognizes that God is the God of mercy and all comfort.
Again, I have to think as Paul approaches Rome, and as he sees fellow Christians coming out to greet him, that in that moment he felt the comfort and encouragement of God. A reminder that he wasn’t a lone. A reminder that God was with him.
In fact, the implication here is that the greeting was a welcome appropriate to a royal emissary or official.
In other words, they greeted Paul as if Caesar himself was coming into town.
Imagine how encouraging that would have been for Paul. After all he’s been through to see people coming out and cheering at his arrival.
Because that’s what Christian friends do. They bring us comfort. They give us encouragement. They remind us of God’s love for us.
And in my opinion, that’s one of the reasons why church attendance is so important. Because church is that place where you come to be encouraged. Where other believers gather around to strengthen and encourage you. That place where everybody knows your name and they’re always glad you came. Right?
And so in response to that comfort, Paul began to thank God.
Third, Paul thanked God for the protection God had provided on the journey.
In 2 Corinthians 2 Paul writes:
14 But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere.
In this passage Paul recognizes that Jesus is the one who protects and leads us into victory. And that it’s through His protection that we are able to go where He’s called us to go.
That being the case, I have to think as the city of Rome came into view, as fellow believers came out to greet him, that Paul was reminded of the protection of God, and how God had gone before them.
How He had been with Him during the riot.
How he had protected him from the assassination attempt.
How He had protected him from the Jewish religious leaders.
How He had protected him from the storms on the boat.
How He had prevented the viper venom from poisoning His body.
That all along the way, it had been God’s protection that had allowed him to reach this point. That Jesus had led him triumphantly.
And so in response to that, Paul began to thank and praise God for the protection He had provided.
Now, you might be thinking, “Ok pastor, that’s great. I’m glad Paul was provided for. I’m glad he was encouraged. I’m glad God protected him. But how does this apply to my life?”
It applies in the exact same way. Because as we come out of the storm or trial we’ve just been through, or even if we’re headed into one, it’s imperative that we stop and thank God in the same way that Paul did.
That we thank God for His provision.
For how he sustained you through the financial storm.
For how he put food on the table when you didn’t have a job.
For how he provided the right job at the right time.
For how He sustained you when it appeared all hope was lost.
For how in the midst of your storm God provided everything that you needed.
I love how Jesus puts its:
31 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.
Church, it’s important that we thank God for what He has provided.
I know for me on a daily basis when I walk into this sanctuary I thank God for what He has provided. That he has given us everything we need to reach our community and our county. That because of Him we have no lack.
But we can’t stop there. Because not only should we thank him for His provision, but also for the comfort and encouragement He has provided.
Comfort and encouragement that comes through friends, family, and church members who are always there for us.
Fellow believers who have come alongside us and encouraged us on the journey. Who in moments of hopelessness bring hope.
Who in moments when we can’t stand, hold us up.
Church, it’s important that we thank God for His comfort and encouragement that comes from those He has placed in our lives.
I don’t know if you’ve ever taken time to do that, but it’s something I would encourage you to do. To thank God for your spouse. To thank God for that family member who always has your back. To thank God for the friend at church who you know lifts you up daily in prayer. To thank God for the people God has placed in your life to bring you comfort and encouragement.
I can tell you, I thank God everyday for the people in our church. I pray, “Thank you Lord for this great people. Thank you for giving me the honor of pastoring them. Thank you for the blessing they are in my life.”
We need to take time to thank God for the encouragement of others that He has brought into our lives.
Finally, we need to thank God for His protection.
We need to recognize that we only survived the storm because He was with us.
That the reason we’re standing after the financial trial, is because He prevented the enemy from knocking us down.
That the only reason we made it through the relational turmoil is because He led us through it.
And the list goes on of the ways God has protected us through the storm. Even in ways we aren’t aware of.
That being the case, we need to thank Him for the protection and victory He has provided.
We need to thank Him for the promise of 2 Thessalonians 3:3 where Paul writes:
3 But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one.
Or what the Psalmist writes in Psalm 138:7
7 Though I walk in the midst of trouble,
you preserve my life;
you stretch out your hand against the wrath of my enemies,
and your right hand delivers me.
Now, you might ask, “Pastor, why is it so critical that I take time to thank God?”
It’s critical because first and foremost He deserves it, and secondly, if you don’t, it’s going to be very difficult for you to keep moving forward.
Because by thanking Him you are acknowledging not only your need for Him in the storms of the past, but your future need for protection in storms that lie ahead.
Which leads to the second part of Paul’s inward focus. Because as Paul thanked God:
Aspect #2- Paul grew in courage.
Luke writes:
15 And the brothers there, when they heard about us, came as far as the Forum of Appius and Three Taverns to meet us. On seeing them, Paul thanked God and took courage.
Luke says as Paul thanked God he took courage.
The word for courage here literally means to grow in confidence. Or to become confident or courageous in the face of real or possible danger.
And this courage is actually a direct result of the praise that Paul just gave to God. Because that’s what praise does. It builds our confidence and our courage. It reminds us of who He is and what He’s done for us. And as a result, it builds us up and gives us courage.
This is what the Psalmist is talking about when he writes:
1 The Lord is my light and my salvation;
whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life;
of whom shall I be afraid?
2 When evildoers assail me
to eat up my flesh,
my adversaries and foes,
it is they who stumble and fall.
3 Though an army encamp against me,
my heart shall not fear;
though war arise against me,
yet I will be confident.
In this Psalm the Psalmist reminds himself that God is his light. That God is his salvation. That God is the stronghold of his life.
And as a result, who should he fear? Nobody.
And as a result, what should he be afraid of? Nothing.
And as a result, when the enemy comes against him, he will not fear, but will be confident that God is with him.
And what was true for the Psalmist, and what was true for Paul, is true for you and me.
Which again is why its so important that we thank God for what He’s done. Because not only does He deserve the praise, but in thanking Him it builds our confidence as we are reminded of the provision, power, and protection of our God.
The question then is, “What is it building our confidence for?”
Well, it’s giving us courage to embrace the new opportunities God is going to lead us into. Not only that, but t’s giving us the courage to face future storms. And finally, it’s giving us the courage to boldly go into the battle.
Because whether you realized it or not, we are in a battle.
I love how author Daniel Henderson puts it. In his book Transforming Prayer he writes:
“The very fact we are seeking God’s face and engaging in life-giving prayer alerts the enemy to our increased threat to is dominion. When we pray, we pick a fight with the devil at a completely new level. Yet this is why we are on earth-not to cruise along on a luxury liner until Jesus comes, but to stay actively engaged in our ‘search and rescue mission’ in the midst of the global spiritual battle for the hearts and minds of people.”
Church we are in a battle, and so when we mediate on and thank God for what He’s done, we are building up the courage we need to keep moving forward. Because like it or not, the enemy isn’t going to back down.
I have to be honest with you, this has never been more true in my life than it has been in the past 9 months.
Nine months ago I made a personal commitment to take my prayer life to a new level. I just knew I needed to. And I’m going to tell you right now, the enemy took notice. Because never before in my life have the battles been as intense as they are right now.
But through the battles I’ve faced this year, not only has God given Denise and I victory, but He continues to build our faith as with each battle we get stronger.
As with each battle our confidence grows.
And you know what, as I think about and thank God for all the victories, it’s given me courage. Courage to stand up for truth. Courage to do what’s right. Courage to not worry about what others might think. Courage to walk into the destination point that God has brought me too.
And the good news this morning is, you can have that courage as well. Courage that comes as you stop and focus in on who God is, what He’s done, and what He wants to do through you as you arrive at your destination point.
Because now you have courage to talk to that co-worker who needs Jesus.
Courage to trust God for financial provision.
Courage to step into that new opportunity.
Courage to fight for your marriage.
Courage to to confront the situation.
Courage to do what God is leading you to do.
The fact is, as Paul was getting ready to enter Rome, he needed that courage. He needed to be reminded that God was with him in Jersualem, God was with him in Caesarea, God was with him in the boat, God was with him on that island, and God is with Him as he now walks into this destination point.
And with that reminder, he now has the courage that comes from a past history of victories. A courage that comes as he thanks God for the power, provision, and presence of God in His life.
And what was true for Paul is true for all of us.
This now leads us to a final aspect of Paul’s inward focus. Because not only did Paul take time to thank God, not only did he grow in his courage, but:
Aspect #3 - Paul embraced and enjoyed the favor of God.
We see this as Paul arrives in Rome. Luke writes:
16 And when we came into Rome, Paul was allowed to stay by himself, with the soldier who guarded him.
What I want you to notice is that when Paul enters Rome he isn’t taken to a prison, a barrack, or even a detention center. Instead, Luke says he is allowed to stay by himself with a soldier who guarded him.
So, what does this mean?
It means that Paul is being showing unusual favor.
Favor most Roman prisoners, at the very least they would have been taken to a place in Rome called the “Quarry Prison”, where prisoners quarried stone from sun up to sun down.
The very worst of prisoners would have been taken to the state prison, a place called the “Tullianum” AKA the death cell, where they may not have even made it to trial.
But Paul escapes both of these facilities and is allowed to stay more than likely in his own apartment with one guard to watch over him.
What that means then is, Paul had considerable freedom to have visitors, read, write, hold small group meetings, and really do anything at his leisure. And as we’re going to see next week, he takes full advantage of this freedom in order to share the gospel.
And the reason it’s important for us to take note of this, is that once again it demonstrates to us that in the midst of a less than ideal situation, God is taking care of Paul.
Because in many ways, the favor of God works like the safety of God.
Remember last week we talked about how the safety God provides doesn’t always meet our standards of what we consider safe. But that’s ok, because as long as Jesus is with us, we can be assured we are safe regardless of the circumstances.
It’s the same with the favor of God. Because when it comes to God’s favor, often times we think of it as God’s best for us in the most ideal situation we can imagine.
For example, maybe for you the favor of God would be God giving you the job you want at the pay you want.
Or maybe for you the favor of God is when God gives you exactly what you want when you ask for it.
And I’m not saying that can’t happen. I think there are times God gives us that kind of favor.
But I think more times than not, God’s favor comes and is more needed in the less than ideal situations.
Favor that then allows you to do what He’s called you to do in that less than ideal situation.
We see this with Paul. Paul is a prisoner. Not ideal, right? But God gives gives Paul the favor he needs to accomplish what God has called him to do in Rome, which is primarily to share the gospel.
We see more examples of this in the OT book of Daniel as God shows favor to Daniel while he is a captive in Babylon.
We see it specifically in Daniel 2 as King Nebuchadnezzar, the King of Babylon has a dream that none of his wise men, magicians, or enchanters can interpret. And as a result Nebuchadnezzar makes a decree that unless the dream is interpreted he’s going to kill all the wise men of Babylon, which would have included Daniel because prior to this Daniel had been appointed as a wise man.
You might ask, “Well, why didn’t somebody just make an interpretation up. How would the king know?”
They couldn’t do that because the king knew that’s what they would do, so not only did he want them to give them the interpretation, he wanted them to tell him what he’d dreamed. To which they said:
10 The Chaldeans answered the king and said, “There is not a man on earth who can meet the king’s demand, for no great and powerful king has asked such a thing of any magician or enchanter or Chaldean.
It’s at this point that Daniel takes the matter to God and God shows Daniel what the king dreamed and also gives him the interpretation. Which then results in the favor of God upon Daniels life. Because look at what the king does after Daniel interprets the dream:
47 The king answered and said to Daniel, “Truly, your God is God of gods and Lord of kings, and a revealer of mysteries, for you have been able to reveal this mystery.” 48 Then the king gave Daniel high honors and many great gifts, and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon and chief prefect over all the wise men of Babylon.
That’s the favor of God church in a less than ideal situation.
And guess what, God wants to give you that kind of favor in your less than ideal situations. The question then is, “How do you get that kind of favor?” It’s simple:
#1 - You have to be committed to living a righteous life.
The Psalmist puts it like this:
12 For you bless the righteous, O Lord;
you cover him with favor as with a shield.
The Psalmist says that the favor of God is upon the righteous.
So, how do you do that?
#2 - You have to be committed to living according to God’s Word.
Solomon puts it like this in Proverbs 3:1-4
1 My son, do not forget my teaching,
but let your heart keep my commandments,
2 for length of days and years of life
and peace they will add to you.
3 Let not steadfast love and faithfulness forsake you;
bind them around your neck;
write them on the tablet of your heart.
4 So you will find favor and good success
in the sight of God and man.
Solomon says God’s favor comes for the person who is committed to following and keeping God’s Word. Which is why reading our Bibles is so important. Because if you don’t know what God’s Word says, it’s going to be difficult to live according to His righteousness.
#3 - You have to be committed to accomplishing God’s Will.
The Psalmist writes:
17 Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us,
and establish the work of our hands upon us;
yes, establish the work of our hands!
What the Psalmist is implying here is that if we want God’s favor, then we need to be in line and in sync with His desires.
James puts it like this:
3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.
James says the reason God doesn’t always grant his favor is because we are asking for it for the wrong reasons.
All that to say, if we want God’s favor on our life, we have to be committed to living a life that represents Him and seeks to accomplish His plan and purpose.
Which means, if you’re committed to living for Jesus and leading others to Him, God’s favor will be on your life, especially when the circumstances are less than ideal, which is when we need his favor the most.
Now, you might be thinking, “Ok pastor, I get that, but the truth is, I’m trying to live for Jesus, but my situation is really bad and I don’t see the favor of God.”
Can I suggest to you that maybe you’re focused on the wrong thing. That maybe instead of focusing on what’s wrong with your situation, you need to start focusing on what’s right and what God might be trying to teach you.
Let me give you an example, and I close with this.
When I was going to Bible College I had two jobs. One was throwing papers at night and the other was managing a Subway Sandwich shop during the day. And while I was thankful for my jobs, at the end of three years of school, I couldn’t stand working at Subway, largely because I was sick and tired of the way I was sick and tired of making sandwiches and I was sick and tired of the way customers treated me. As a result, I started looking for a different job.
It’s at that point two things happened.
First, as I prayed about how much I hated my job and asked God to help me find a better job, I heard the Lord speak something to me that caught me off guard. He said, “Brad, what are you going to do when you’re pastoring a church and everything isn’t exactly how you want it. Are you just going to quit? Is that the kind of pastor you are going to be. Brad I have you here for a reason. You need to trust me.”
At that point I stopped looking for another job. And that’s when something else happened.
I don’t remember if it was a few days, a week, or later that month, but one afternoon I was up at the church we were attending and serving at, a church I had dreamed to be on staff on, but never thought it would be possible. And as I walked down the hall I ran into the Lead Pastor.
He stopped me and asked me how school was going. I told him I was in my last semester and would soon start the process of finding a ministry position. That’s when he looked at me and said, “Brad, have you ever considered coming on staff here?”
I was like, “Have I considered it??? Of course I have.” But I said, “I didn’t think you’d be interested in me since I really don’t have any experience.”
He said, “You’re right, you don’t have any experience. But I’m not worried about that, because I can teach you what you don’t know. What I can’t teach you and what you already have is a good work ethic and good leadership ability. And here’s how I know you have that Brad. Over the past three years I’ve been watching you. I’ve watched how hard you’ve worked. Brad I’ve been in your Subway store. I’ve watched how you’ve interacted with customers. I’ve watched how you treat your staff and how they respect you. Brad, those are things I need in a staff pastor.”
And what I realized in that moment is that Subway had been my training ground. The place where God was preparing me, equipping me, and positioning me for what He had called me to do. That Subway represented the favor of God. Favor that had opened a door of opportunity I could have never opened on my own.
All that to say, I don’t know what your situation is, but I have a feeling there’s more going on than you can see. That in the midst of your pain, your discomfort, and your discouragement, that God is at work preparing, equipping, and positioning you for a destination point that may not be ideal, but is full of God’s favor. And that my friends is the best place to be.
As Paul approached Rome he took time to thank God. He found courage to keep moving forward. And he experienced and embraced God’s favor.
My challenge to you this morning is to do the same. To stop, look around, and recognize how God has helped you. How He has gone before you. How He has protected you. And in the midst of that reminder, begin to thank Him. Begin to find courage in the victories. And walk forward into His favor.
Let’s Pray