And when Paul's sister's son heard of their lying in wait, he went and entered into the castle, and told Paul.
We live in a troubled world, and it presents us with many troubles. Some of them are unavoidable. We suffer through them. We learn from them (or else we grow bitter through them). Eventually, we will all face a trouble that results in the loss of our life. “It is appointed unto man once to die…” (Hebrews 9:27).
But for those who place their faith in Christ, and perhaps especially for those who are called and follow the Lord into Christian ministry, it is remarkable how often God will see to it that we hear of those troubles in time to reverse their course.
I am reminded of an incident that happened during my pastorate in Astoria, OR. We had a couple of ladies in the church who had been attending and were members for some time. They were always pleasant and encouraging. One of them was a talented pianist, and both of them were well-educated. We had been preparing for our Resurrection Sunday services with special music, all orchestrated and involving this lady on the piano. It was supposed to be a pretty big service.
A few days earlier, I had the difficult duty of dealing with a problem in a family in the church. The pianist heard about my meeting with this family and (although I did not know it) was not happy about it. She was at the church practicing her music when I arrived at the church and entered the basement through a back door. I was in a classroom doing some work. The pianist, not knowing that I had come to the church, came downstairs and began making phone calls on the church phone just outside the room I was in. She called three or four families, told them about my meeting with the one I had dealt with, and began organizing a group to have me fired. (I had personally planted the church. It was unlikely she would have been successful.) After about the third call, she returned upstairs to the piano. I waited a moment, then followed her upstairs and confronted her.
God revealed to me her “lying in wait” so I could correct it and preempt the damage.
Nothing escapes God. And we can trust Him whether He chooses to reveal the trouble ahead of time, allow us to be surprised and overtaken by it, or even succumb to the trouble.
#GodsProtection #DivineIntervention #TrustInGod #FaithThroughTrials #GodSeesAll
Forewarned by Faith: Seeing and Overcoming Hidden Threats
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