The MessageBy Gina BrownCopyright 1999 Ever wonder if you are going in the right direction? Question your predicaments and ask God, “What are you doing with me here?"  As Christians we evaluate whether or not we are where we need to be, and the answer is usually YES. Take Paul for example; here he was on the road to Damascus when suddenly he is spoken to by God himself. On that day he had hit a cross roads, for God took him from one direction to another. From persecuting Christians and doubting the validity of Jesus, to becoming the one to bring the good news to the gentiles and uniting them with the Jewish Christians. It wasn't an easy task and later he would me martyred for it. But the journey that took him there was just as important as his final destination. God had given him a calling, and yet, Paul was faced with opposition and predicaments that should have deterred him; or at least made him question if God had picked the right guy. His expedition would take him through prisons, trials, persecution, and a shipwreck. On his way to a trial in Rome, Paul was involved in a shipwreck and was found stranded on an island called Malta for three months. During that time he witnessed and cured the sick. Now some might argue that this was a sign that Paul wasn't suppose to go to Rome to face his accusers. That by staying on the Island he would have the freedom he needed to do his ministry. But as the story continues you will see that everything is in God's hands and timings. Eventually he returned to Rome and once there the real work began. He was given house arrest ( later freed by default) and rented a house for two years there. During that time he wrote; Ephesians, Phillippians, Colossians, and Philimon. God had always been in control. Paul's ministry had taken an impotant step, because Jesus had now made a way. The time on the Island had prepared and refreshed him for what was to come. You see, God many times puts us in places of waiting. All though it may seem like nothing is happening it really is. God is always at work in us. Preparing, harvesting, pruning, building up, tearing down, fertilizing, teaching, and just being with us. So whether you are in waiting, feel like you're stranded on an island, or are in the full swing of things; remember God is at work in you. It is God's work that will get you through. The temptation is to doubt, but the revelation is to let God work it out. |