Have you ever wondered if you are doing what the Lord prepared in advance for you to do?

Have you ever wondered if you are on the correct path that God cleared for you with one trust step at a time?

Have you ever questioned if this really is the plan??

Have you doubted if it’s you that changed or if it’s what God called you to do that changed??

I am completely guilty of second guessing, over analyzing, and reevaluating where I am, where I should be, what’s the plan, am I on the path, (and my personal favorite) asking are You sure Lord….

I’ve become pretty good at this past time….

Reading my Bible today, I stumbled across a passage in Acts that I had not noticed much before.

In Acts 23, the Apostle Paul has been arrested in Jerusalem. He stands before the Sadducees and Pharisees declaring Christ as the Messiah…the Resurrected King.

The Council of the Sanhedrin doesn’t like to hear that.

In fact, the council becomes so enraged that Paul is suggesting that they not only missed the Messiah but that they crucified Him too, troops are ordered to remove Paul from that place and take him to the barracks where “he would be safer”.

The council was so furious the commander of the guard feared Paul would be torn to pieces by these “God-fearing” Jews.

As Paul is sitting in prison that next night, this happens:

The Lord stood near Paul and said, ” Be brave, for as you have solemnly and faithfully witnessed about Me in Jerusalem, so you must in Rome” (Acts 23:11).

Paul was strongly encouraged by his friends to NOT go to Jerusalem out of fear/concern that this exact scenario would happen…but Paul had felt the leading of the Lord telling him to go anyway.. so he went out of obedience to God’s plan.

Now, though, he must be second guessing this plan…

How do I know that?

Because God came and stood near him to encourage him on to Rome….to stick to the plan.

If Paul didn’t need encouragement in that cold cell then the Lord would not have gone to him, would he?

If he only needed a little encouragement,then God surely would have sent an angel to minister to him…but the Lord Himself came and stood by Paul to administer grace.

“The Lord gave Paul special encouragement at this time, that he was indeed doing just what God wanted him to do” (AMP Study Note).

Wow….that blows me away!!

Sometimes, when we are being faithful to what God has called us to do the path gets murky and the plan looks messy.

It is so easy to begin doubting whether or not we should even be doing whatever it is we are doing.

It becomes easy to be fearful of what else may come along to murky these waters up even more.

It is almost a natural reaction to listen to others who love us and tell us that there may be a different way instead of trusting the plan of God.

There are days when I wish God would come stand by me and say “hang on kid, you’re doing alright…keep walking this way”.

Wouldn’t that be wonderful??

But, you know, I think He does do that for us …just in more subtle ways than He did with His chosen Apostle.

Why else would a verse like this pop out at me in a normal morning reading when it never had before?

Perhaps, it’s because the Lord knows that I need to be encouraged too today.

How about you?

Are you looking for clearer vision on the road you are walking that you feel God has placed you on?

Join me, then, in keeping our eyes open for the ways God reveals Himself to us….

His Word

His Church

Music

People we have been able to bless

Reminders of who has blessed us

His creation

Be encouraged to press on today.