Praise Jesus in Your Midnight Hour; Victory is Coming!
"About midnight, Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once, all the prison doors flew open, and everybody's chains came loose (Acts 16: 25-26)."
Paul and Silas had been stripped, beaten and thrown into prison. Their circumstances were grim. They were placed in the inner cell of the prison which was very dark and did not have much ventilation. Their legs were locked into stocks which were used in that day for punishment and torture. In the natural, Paul and Silas could not see the end in sight. They could have worried or despaired and thought their life was now over, but that is not what they did. Instead of focusing on their present circumstances, they prayed and sang hymns to God. They worshiped Him in spite of everything going on around them. Notice that as they were praising the Lord, the other prisoners were paying attention-they were listening.
What an example of great faith for you and me. Paul and Silas knew the Lord was with them in that prison cell. They knew He would never leave them. They chose to focus not on the temporary, but on the Lord in whom nothing is too hard! Are you in a prison today? The prison could be in your mind, it could be in your marriage, your job or lack of. It could be a child or loved one that has not yet come to know Christ. It could be a financial burden or it could be in a relationship that keeps spiraling downward. Whatever prison you may be in today, God is greater and nothing, absolutely nothing is too hard for Him. "Ah, Sovereign Lord, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for You. You show love to thousands but bring the punishment for the fathers' sins into the laps of their children after them. O great and powerful God, whose name is the Lord Almighty, great are Your purposes and mighty are Your deeds (Jeremiah 32: 17-19)."
I want to encourage your heart today. God has not brought you this far to let you go. He will make a way and He promises this. "I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert (Isaiah 43:19)." He sovereignly works in and through you according to His good pleasure (Philippians 2:13). Nothing happens by chance. God is in control of everything that happens in your life~the good and the bad. As His child, we must always remember that no matter how bad things are, He promises to work it out for our good and His glory.
Friend, you were created by God for God. He desires for you to be filled with Him and walk in the truth. I don't know about you, but my heart's desire is for others to see Jesus in me. It doesn't matter if they know who I am, I just want them to know my God. Isn't that why we are here? to bring honor and glory to the Lord Almighty and point others to Him? Just like the prisoners were listening to Paul and Silas in the prison cell that night, people are watching your life and listening to how you speak to see if this Jesus you say you believe in is real. We bring glory to God in our trials as we continue to bless Him and praise Him. This requires us to keep our eyes fixed on our Lord, trusting Him, knowing He holds our life in His hands. As His child, you have His Holy Spirit living on the inside of you who will guide you, comfort you and help you.
"But when He, the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth (John 16:13)."
"But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said (John 14:26)."
"In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And He who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will (Romans 8:26-27)."
God is on your side. He is for you. He loves you with an unfailing love. He is good and has a good plan for your life.
"I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness. I will build you up again....I will turn their mourning into gladness, I will give them comfort and joy instead of sorrow. I will satisfy the priests with abundance, and my people will be filled with My bounty, declares the Lord...This is what the Lord says: Restrain your voice from weeping and your eyes from tears, for your work will be rewarded, declares the Lord. They will return from the land of the enemy. So their is hope for your future, declares the Lord (Jeremiah 31: 3-4; 13-14; 16-17)."
Praise the Lord! He is worthy! Hold on to the hope you have in Christ. Your story is still being written and your midnight hour is almost over. Jesus destroyed the works of satan and triumphed over him. You don't fight for victory, you fight from it!
Lord, God, I pray that You will touch every person who reads this today. Open the eyes of their understanding that they may know you more and grow in the knowledge of the truth of Your word. Give them everything that they need. May they trust You more. May they know that everything is going to be okay because You hold them in the palm of Your hand. For those that have not yet come to saving faith in You, I pray that You will draw them to You. Lord, remove the veil over their eyes so they may see you and cry out to You.
"If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him. (John 7:37)."
"I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies, and whoever lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this? (John 11:25)."
Paul and Silas had been stripped, beaten and thrown into prison. Their circumstances were grim. They were placed in the inner cell of the prison which was very dark and did not have much ventilation. Their legs were locked into stocks which were used in that day for punishment and torture. In the natural, Paul and Silas could not see the end in sight. They could have worried or despaired and thought their life was now over, but that is not what they did. Instead of focusing on their present circumstances, they prayed and sang hymns to God. They worshiped Him in spite of everything going on around them. Notice that as they were praising the Lord, the other prisoners were paying attention-they were listening.
What an example of great faith for you and me. Paul and Silas knew the Lord was with them in that prison cell. They knew He would never leave them. They chose to focus not on the temporary, but on the Lord in whom nothing is too hard! Are you in a prison today? The prison could be in your mind, it could be in your marriage, your job or lack of. It could be a child or loved one that has not yet come to know Christ. It could be a financial burden or it could be in a relationship that keeps spiraling downward. Whatever prison you may be in today, God is greater and nothing, absolutely nothing is too hard for Him. "Ah, Sovereign Lord, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for You. You show love to thousands but bring the punishment for the fathers' sins into the laps of their children after them. O great and powerful God, whose name is the Lord Almighty, great are Your purposes and mighty are Your deeds (Jeremiah 32: 17-19)."
I want to encourage your heart today. God has not brought you this far to let you go. He will make a way and He promises this. "I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert (Isaiah 43:19)." He sovereignly works in and through you according to His good pleasure (Philippians 2:13). Nothing happens by chance. God is in control of everything that happens in your life~the good and the bad. As His child, we must always remember that no matter how bad things are, He promises to work it out for our good and His glory.
Friend, you were created by God for God. He desires for you to be filled with Him and walk in the truth. I don't know about you, but my heart's desire is for others to see Jesus in me. It doesn't matter if they know who I am, I just want them to know my God. Isn't that why we are here? to bring honor and glory to the Lord Almighty and point others to Him? Just like the prisoners were listening to Paul and Silas in the prison cell that night, people are watching your life and listening to how you speak to see if this Jesus you say you believe in is real. We bring glory to God in our trials as we continue to bless Him and praise Him. This requires us to keep our eyes fixed on our Lord, trusting Him, knowing He holds our life in His hands. As His child, you have His Holy Spirit living on the inside of you who will guide you, comfort you and help you.
"But when He, the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth (John 16:13)."
"But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said (John 14:26)."
"In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And He who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will (Romans 8:26-27)."
God is on your side. He is for you. He loves you with an unfailing love. He is good and has a good plan for your life.
"I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness. I will build you up again....I will turn their mourning into gladness, I will give them comfort and joy instead of sorrow. I will satisfy the priests with abundance, and my people will be filled with My bounty, declares the Lord...This is what the Lord says: Restrain your voice from weeping and your eyes from tears, for your work will be rewarded, declares the Lord. They will return from the land of the enemy. So their is hope for your future, declares the Lord (Jeremiah 31: 3-4; 13-14; 16-17)."
Praise the Lord! He is worthy! Hold on to the hope you have in Christ. Your story is still being written and your midnight hour is almost over. Jesus destroyed the works of satan and triumphed over him. You don't fight for victory, you fight from it!
Lord, God, I pray that You will touch every person who reads this today. Open the eyes of their understanding that they may know you more and grow in the knowledge of the truth of Your word. Give them everything that they need. May they trust You more. May they know that everything is going to be okay because You hold them in the palm of Your hand. For those that have not yet come to saving faith in You, I pray that You will draw them to You. Lord, remove the veil over their eyes so they may see you and cry out to You.
"If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him. (John 7:37)."
"I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies, and whoever lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this? (John 11:25)."
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