Over the past few years the Lord has been teaching me how he can do abundantly more than we could ever imagine when we simply obey! I want to dive into Acts 9:1-19 where we see an example of how the Lord can take a simple act of obedience and do the unimaginable. Let's do it!
9 Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples. He went to the high priest 2 and 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. 3 As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4 He 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.”
7 The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone. 8 Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. 9 For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.
10 In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, “Ananias!”
“Yes, Lord,” he answered.
11 The 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. 12 In 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 holy people in Jerusalem. 14 And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.”
15 But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. 16 I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.”
17 Then 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.” 18 Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, 19 and after taking some food, he regained his strength.
I don't know about y'all but I've heard of Saul countless times, but I had never heard of Ananias before. I've heard of how Saul turned into Paul. I've heard how Paul traveled all over the Roman Empire sharing the gospel. I've heard how Paul reached thousands. I know that he wrote 13 books of the Bible. BUT, without Ananias none of that happens!
Now let's break it down. Saul was known for persecuting and murdering christians. I think if I was Ananias I would be EXTREMELY timid to go talk to him. He was probably scared, and he probably came up with every excuse in the book of why he shouldn't or couldn't but, he did it!! Then Jesus used that small act of obedience to reach thousands.
Personally, there has been countless times that the Holy Spirit has prompted me to do something or say something and I came up with every excuse not to, but when I do he ALWAYS shows up! I think that the Lord loves to do this with our testimonies. I know that there are parts of my testimony that I don't like sharing. Even though I know I am forgiven, the devil likes to use these parts to shame me and to attack me. BUT when I let go of that and share the scariest parts of my testimony is always when I see the most fruit. Revelation 12:11 says, "They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death." They TRIUMPHED by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their TESTIMONIES!
The Lord can use your small acts of obedience to do abundantly more than you could ever expect! I want to challenge you this week to pray for one person who you can share the gospel with. You don't have to have the perfect words, you just have to tell them what Jesus has done for you. Share the good parts of your story and the scary ones. You can do this!!!
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