A Word from God's Word . . .

1/23 – Seek the Lord while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near.  (Isaiah 55:6 – ESV)  While the Lord’s invitation is always extended, only the unwise will delay in responding to that call.

1/24 – “Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that He may have compassion on him, and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.”  (Isaiah 55:7 – ESV)  God’s invitation extends to everyone, because Jesus died for everyone.

1/25 – “Now as he (Saul) went on his way, he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him, and falling to the ground he heard a voice saying to him, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?’  And he said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’  And He said, ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.  But rise and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do.’”  (Acts 9:3-6 – ESV)  Today the Christian calendar remembers the Conversion of Saul as he traveled to Damascus to arrest Christians – a trip that changed his life (and history) completely.

1/26 – “Now there was a disciple at Damascus named Ananias.  The Lord said to him in a vision, ‘Ananias’.  And he said, ‘Here I am, Lord.’  And the Lord said to him, ‘Rise and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus named Saul, for behold, he is praying.’”  (Acts 9:10-11 – ESV)  Can you imagine what went through the mind of Ananias when he received this vision?  Go to this man who was coming to Damascus to arrest Christians?  Lord, you have to be kidding!  Ananias missed a key point in this vision – “Behold, he is praying”.

1/27 – “But Ananias answered, ‘Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints at Jerusalem’.  But the Lord said to him, ‘Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel.’”  (Acts 9:  13, 15 – ESV)  This was just the beginning of the story of Paul, the Apostle.