September 4, 2019

September 4

Running with Jesus  

Acts 7:57-58 Then they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and ran upon him with one accord, And cast him out of the city, and stoned him: and the witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man's feet, whose name was Saul.

      It is so sad because this angel faced man will be stoned for sharing the gospel. He never backed down. Stephen presented the truth to these men and they could not stand to hear his soul piercing sermon because they were guilty. They would not humble themselves and pray and ask for forgiveness. They could get rid of the messenger but not the message. But behind the scenes God was getting ready to do a greater work even in this innocent man’s death. Where was God working in this horrible thing, a stoning, you say? Look where they laid Stephen's coat at the feet of a young man named Saul. 

     Saul was a Christian’s greatest feared enemy at this time. Saul was gazing into this whole matter and his life would be affected by this whole moment. We will run into him down this dusty road.

     We never know what God is up to in catastrophic events in our lives. We can trust an all knowing God ,Who is going to do what He promised "all things work together for the good for those who love Him." We have a God, Who is faithful to His word. No matter what stone is being thrown at us we can know and understand that He will use each stone to work out His plan and purposes and will in some way bring honor and glory to His name. We must remember to give Him praise in our difficulties. This is a difficult task to do when your heart is breaking and your emotions are running wild. We will only see victory in our lives and protection from becoming bitter and hard when we place our faith and trust in Him while the devil is trying to stone us. Remember he wants our joy and joy is birthed out of loving and trusting God with all your circumstance.  So today humble your heart and talk to God about your stoning this morning.

 Here is a prayer for you: Father I feel all beat up this morning. The pain is more than I can bear and I don't understand what is going on in my life. Today because Your Word tells me You are working things out for good in my life, I will trust You. You might be teaching me or wanting me to be a witness of how You keep us stable in hard times so I will trust You, I will sing praise to You and I will give You honor and glory because my joy is not in my circumstance but in You. You are my awesome sustainer of life! Amen, amen and amen!

Stephen's response, in the morning.

Judy Hollaway

Originally penned 2015