Good morning to all on this Palm Sunday morning. Waine and I are in Thomaston this weekend. We (ZOe) hosted a Easter Egg hunt at The Rock Ranch yesterday and over 2,000 kids attended. The kids were able to hunt for eggs , zip line and climb the rock wall. The event lasted from 11 AM - 2 PM; I was working the Saturday clinic so was unable to attend. Jill, Brooks and Mackenzie came for a short visit. Brooks was competing in an international Taekwondo tournament in Atlanta and daughter Jill used the occasion to see the new house in Thomaston. It was a short and lovely visit. Our Columbus office opens tomorrow. God has parted the "Red Sea" for us and we are walking through. I witnessed about this vision that God had for ZOe in Columbus so many have seen the Power and Glory of God work to bring this about. When God is for something, nothing can prevail against it, hallelujah! Pray for us that we would be a continued blessing to the patients we serve.
I am continuing my journey in Acts, chapter 16 verses 1- 39, "Paul came to Derbe and then to Lystra, where a disciple named Timothy lived, whose mother was Jewish and a believer but whose father was a Greek. The believers at Lystra and Iconium spoke well of him. Paul wanted to take him along on the journey, so he circumcised him because of the Jews who lived in that area, for they all knew that his father was a Greek. As they traveled from town to town, they delivered the decisions reached by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem for the people to obey. So the churches were strengthened in the faith and grew daily in numbers. Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia. When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to. So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas. During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.
From Troas we put out to sea and sailed straight for Samothrace, and the next day we went on to Neapolis. From there we traveled to Philippi, a Roman colony and the leading city of that district of Macedonia. And we stayed there several days. On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered there. One of those listening was a woman from the city of Thyatira named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth. She was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message. When she and the members of her household were baptized, she invited us to her home. “If you consider me a believer in the Lord,” she said, “come and stay at my house.” And she persuaded us.
Once when we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a female slave who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. She earned a great deal of money for her owners by fortune-telling. She followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.” She kept this up for many days. Finally Paul became so annoyed that he turned around and said to the spirit, “In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!” At that moment the spirit left her. When her owners realized that their hope of making money was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to face the authorities. They brought them before the magistrates and said, “These men are Jews, and are throwing our city into an uproar by advocating customs unlawful for us Romans to accept or practice.” The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten with rods. After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully. When he received these orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks. About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everyone’s chains came loose. The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped. But Paul shouted, “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!” The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. He then brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.” Then they spoke the Word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house. At that hour of the night the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his household were baptized. The jailer brought them into his house and set a meal before them; he was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God—he and his whole household. When it was daylight, the magistrates sent their officers to the jailer with the order: “Release those men.” The jailer told Paul, “The magistrates have ordered that you and Silas be released. Now you can leave. Go in peace.”
But Paul said to the officers: “They beat us publicly without a trial, even though we are Roman citizens, and threw us into prison. And now do they want to get rid of us quietly? No! Let them come themselves and escort us out.” The officers reported this to the magistrates, and when they heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, they were alarmed. They came to appease them and escorted them from the prison, requesting them to leave the city. After Paul and Silas came out of the prison, they went to Lydia’s house, where they met with the brothers and sisters and encouraged them. Then they left." Amen. May God add a blessing to the reading and hearing of His Word.
There were several puzzling portions of this passage or me. The first of which is why would Paul be annoyed that the slave woman was proclaiming that they were servants of Christ. I had to think on this for a minute because I couldn't understand what about that was annoying. Then I got it. The unclean spirit in the woman was more mocking than prophetic. The spirit meant to belittle the Power and Majesty of Christ. Christ is more than a fortune teller, He is the future and does not need Satan or his demons to qualify it or substantiate it. Remember always that Satan knows the scriptures more than we do. Satan is quite aware of the Power of Faith and the Power of the sacrifice of Jesus. Satan is one being who understand fully what eternity without God is like, he (Satan) experiences this reality daily. Satan also knows what eternity will be like for people who do not accept the atonement made possible through a faith in Christ. Satan is intent on getting as many souls as he can to be with him in hell for eternity.
The example of the fortune teller is contrasted to that of the jailer who was an unbeliever until he saw the power of God especially as it relates to His chosen ones. God sent an earthquake to destroy the jail. He was demonstrating at that point that there is no power on earth or in heaven that can hold the servants of God. There is no power that can stand against His children. Paul and Silas understood this which is why they did not need to flee. They understood that their incarceration was part of God's plan of salvation for the jailer and all other who witnessed His true power. By not fleeing, Paul and Silas demonstrated their faith. As children of God we do not have to flee any situation. We are to stand firm so that others can come to the realization that what God says is true; He will be our Shield, our Rock and our Sword. No power or principality of this world can stand against us. We need only stay true to our faith!
Are there chains holding you today? Are you burdened by any particular thing? You need only pray and believe and you jail cell will be opened and your chains and shackles will fall off. Just look at Waine and I. So many of our "shackles" have been removed. Jill remarked that she was in awe of our current situation. She called it our "victory lap" and it is. Our time and circumstances now is our victory lap. It is God telling us and the world through us that you are never too old to experience success --the only ingredients are faith and obedience.
Now may the Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.
Stephanie
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