Acts 9

We all know and love Acts chapter 9. The conversion of Saul on the road to Damascus is of central importance to the story of Acts, and the New Testament as a whole. Jesus speaks audibly to Saul, sparking his call and commissioning to evangelism. What’s so cool about this is that it tells us, directly from the mouth of the Lord, that no one is beyond the power of God to reach, redeem, and then use for the kingdom. Saul was a leader in the violent persecution of Christians as a young man, present in the killing of Stephen in the previous chapters, yet God reached out to him, on his way to arrest men, women and children of the Way, and used him to play a unique role in taking the gospel to the broader world.  

From verse 10 we meet Ananias, an ordinary man – not an apostle, a prophet, a pastor, an evangelist, an elder. Yet God used him because he was an ordinary man. Ananias’ God-given role was to welcome Saul into the Christian family by laying hands on him. Despite worrying about Saul being the man who had many Christians killed or captured, he obeyed God and went to find him. Because of this obedience, Saul was able to be filled with the Holy Spirit and go on to become the great Apostle he was. Sometimes I think I’m not good enough to be used by God, or don’t do enough but God loves to use His children, however ordinary they seem. It’s important to be expectant and available. Waiting on the Lord and hearing what He has to say is something I’m learning to integrate into my daily lifestyle. Every day God wants to speak to us and call us to be obedient to His voice. We never know the impact we may have by doing what the Lord wants us to do.