THURSDAY
This week we are beginning our first of two conference weeks in the devotionals. For these two weeks, I figured we would look at some stories of people’s encounters with the presence of God to give us some perspective on the various ways we can experience the presence of God. We will look at some biblical characters this week, and next week we will explore the stories of some believers’ encounters with God in the history of the church. In the campaign we saw Moses experience God in various ways: daily in the tabernacle, his glory on Mt. Sinai, the 10 plagues, etc. These experiences we will add to that list.
Acts 9:1–9 (NIV)
9 Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples. He went to the high priest 2 and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. 3 As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”
5 “Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked.
“I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. 6 “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”
7 The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone. 8 Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. 9 For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.
Here, Jesus meets with Paul in a dramatic way that leads to Paul’s conversion. Prior to this moment, Paul was persecuting the church, determined to stamp out what he perceived to be a distortion of the truth. He was zealous for the truth and would not be persuaded easily. God meets with him in a powerful encounter that blinds him for three days.
The main point I want us to see this week is that we encounter God in unique ways. We should not put God into a box and define the ways in which God must encounter us or only look for certain ways in which we may encounter God. God has a personality, as we do, and he can encounter us in unique ways and even in different ways at different times depending on our life situations.
Reflection
If you’re running from God and he has chosen you to be among his people, he has ways of getting your attention. Today, I’d invite you to reflect on your past and maybe even your present circumstances and discern how God has gotten your attention.