Amber Thiessen
Jan 15, 20212 min
Happy Friday!
Today, in 1967, the first Super Bowl was played in Los Angeles, and the Green Bay Packers win against the Kansas City Chiefs 35-10. While this could be a foreshadowing of this year's champions ;) we're reminded that every game has a winner.
In Acts 14, Paul and Barnabas are teaching in one town, only to be threatened and move to the next one. They begin their teaching ministry again, but some Jews follow them here, and stir up the crowd. Angry and bloodthirsty, the crowd stone Paul and drag him outside the city.
They thought he was dead.
Perhaps they cheered, thinking they had won.
His disciples come around him, and, to our surprise, he gets up! An angry mob was not victorious this time, and Paul continued on with Barnabas, "strengthening the souls of the disciplines, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God" (Acts 14:22).
The victory here, is that God's purposes prevail. I doubt the next leg of the journey was taken without some painful steps involved. You aren't left for dead without any physical injury. His own experiences with suffering, aligned with his teaching; Paul set the example for believers, that following Christ will include hardship.
Wherever your challenges lie today, may you be encouraged today that you are not alone, that God hears your prayers, and Jesus has won the ultimate victory for us.
This week on the blog
Here are a few articles I gathered from around the web this week:
The Spiritual Discipline of Joy
In a world seeking happiness and pleasure, the mystery of the joy of the Lord often gets lost.
7 Things to Keep in Mind When Kids Ask Questions About Faith
With that in mind, here are the seven things that I hope and pray characterise the answers I do give my children for the “reason for the hope that we have” (1 Peter 3:15) as I pray they make it their own.
Creating the Right Kind of Bible Reading Plan
Adelaide shares some more helpful and very practical tips for reading the Bible from her own experiences growing in discipline.
From RisenMotherhood, how our inadequacies reveal the goodness of God.
How to Read the Bible with 'Open Ears'
On becoming faithful followers of Christ, by being a faithful reader of the Word, and how to do that with ears that are open.