Reading: Acts 2:17
“In the last days it will be, God declares, that I will pour out my
Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and daughters shall prophesy, and your
young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams.”
Just like the Israelites we
believe in God’s prophecies and we
know there are concrete stories of His revealed plans in visions and
dreams. And yet often we hesitate to expect them into our everyday plans or
even in quiet retreats for ourselves.
Or we do accept the dreams and visions and then promptly begin to
second-guess our interpretation. The path to the vision is not the way we have
chosen; it doesn’t seem to be well planned. It really doesn’t make practical
sense. We are too young or too old. The cost might be too high.
We have an abundance of worrying barriers that we set up as our litmus
test which too often wears us into such weariness that we give up before we
even let the match light the fire. We forget that God will break through our
ignorance and our misunderstandings.
At the end of his second missionary journey, after a sharp
disagreement that separated Paul and Barnabus, Paul, along with Timothy, began
a return trip through the towns and cities that had growing churches. However
they were forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia and were not
permitted to go to Bithynia. Can’t help but wonder if Paul questioned this
sweep of barricades.
And then Paul received a vision of a man in Macedonia appealing for
help. “..immediately we sought to
go…concluding that God had caused us to preach the gospel to them.” Acts
16:10 NAS
Paul didn’t worry over the closed and opened doors. He just kept
moving. His heart was set solidly on going wherever God led him regardless of
practicality, presumed common sense, or cost. He had learned to live actively
into God’s words—His flow in His time—His vision.
Lord, help us all to see the dreams You inspire, and then, seek Your
Spirit to guide us moment by moment.
Psalm of Worship: Genesis 1:17
“God set them in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth,”
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