At Lystra a man was sitting who had no strength in his feet, lame from his mother’s womb, who had never walked. This man was listening to Paul as he spoke, who, when he had fixed his gaze on him and had seen that he had faith to be made well, said with a loud voice, “Stand upright on your feet.”
But Jews came from Antioch and Iconium, and having won over the crowds, they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing him to be dead. Acts 14:8-10;19
Have you hear the phrase, “no good deed will go unpunished”… lol, its supposed to be, “no good deed will go unrewarded”. And ultimately, I believe that is true. But, here on earth, you can expect to be persecuted if you preach the name of Jesus and accompany that message by good deeds and miracles. There is always opposition to the name of Jesus. It happened to Paul. After healing a man who was born lame, the crazy crowds were incited by outsiders to stone him. One minute they laud Paul and Barnabas as Hermes and Zeus and want to offer them sacrifices. The next moment, they stone them. The lesson… serve God, love people one at a time, and put very little trust in crowds.
What opportunities are before me to reach out and love others in Jesus name today?
God, what a wonderful day ahead. There are problems that need Your miracle working power. Use the overflow of love in my heart to encourage and bless others. Help me shine for You and open the door for the gospel. I pray You strengthen my mom today and prepare people to come to the outreach event on Friday.
