Need a Lift? Acts 18:1-17

We all need encouragement at times.  When someone we respect says things to us that build us up doesn't it make a difference in the way we act or respond to situations?  When I was a new Christian there was a woman who always found something good to say to me.

She made an effort to watch me and find something she could praise.  She obviously could read people and their body language for she had me pegged as one who needed to be reassured of my value.  It was her attentiveness that first impacted me and brought me back to church again and again.

Paul has had a rough time of things lately.  He was scorned, stoned, jailed and run out of town.  Anyone would begin to doubt themselves and their ability to carry out the mission God gave them.  Then, God spoke to Paul.  It must have been just what the doctor ordered.


One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision: "Do not be afraid; keep on speaking, do not be silent. For I am with you, and no one is going to attack and harm you, because I have many people in this city." So Paul stayed for a year and a half, teaching them the word of God. (Acts 18:9-11)


Those times when I need a boost, a shot in the arm, I turn to the scriptures, ask God to speak and sure enough He does.  By the time I am finished reading, praying and journaling, a theme surfaces and my path becomes clearer and my confidence is soaring.  God is so good.

Read Acts 18:1-17 here.