Acts 21:19 – But they said to her, “You are beside yourself!” Yet she kept insisting that it was so. So they said, “It is his angel.”
Paul simply announces spiritual warfare as a fact.
The church was praying earnestly for Peter’s release. Herod had begun persecuting those who belonged to the church. He had just had James, the brother of John, beheaded. Now, Peter was in prison, and Herod intended to bring him to trial the next day. The church, deeply fearful, was desperately praying for the release of their leader, Peter.
The Lord answered their prayers. He sent an angel to wake Peter from his deep sleep and miraculously brought him out of the prison. Awestruck and overjoyed, Peter, still processing the miracle that had just occurred, went straight to the home of Mary, where he knew the church would be gathered, praying. But when he knocked and the young servant girl reported that Peter was at the door, the response of the church was, “You’re out of your mind! It must be his angel.”
How often do our prayers resemble this? We face circumstances beyond our control, deeply troubled by the weight of our problems, and we turn to God. We seek Him earnestly, pleading for His intervention. But then we’re caught off guard when the Lord actually answers our prayers, and we think, “This can’t be real. You’re out of your mind.”
When we pray, do we truly believe that God hears us? Do we live lives of faith, confident that “whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him” (1 John 5:15)? Or do we respond with disbelief, even when God moves?
Are we truly ready to receive God’s answers when they come?
Dear Lord, increase my faith and help me truly believe in You, Amen.
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