22/11/2020 - THE ENCOUNTER ON THE WAY

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As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. Acts 9:3

How was Saul’s departure from Jerusalem? How long did that walk take and where did he spend the night? These are questions that no one asks, but the Lord, who accompanied him, knew everything. In fact, God knows everyone’s thoughts and certainly knew about the threats that man was breathing against the disciples of Christ from Damascus. Likewise, the Father knows everything we think and are willing to do. Stay alert!

Saul’s importance was no greater than anyone else’s. What the Lord did through him, He will do for anyone else whom He calls. Surely God prepared him for that moment. Now, who can say that the Most High has not instructed us to carry out a mission in His work? Even if someone gets carried away by the enemy, he will change if he surrenders to Christ.

Saul was following his journey on the path he chose, for he thought it pleased God, but suddenly, a light from Heaven surrounded him. We need that bright light to change our lives, if we are walking crooked paths. Sometimes, it comes without physical manifestation and we can’t bear so much conviction in our hearts. God is good and faithful!

I was only six years old, when I went with two older brothers to a church to represent our parents, who refused such an invitation. The message entered my heart like a sharp sword. Despite my young age, I felt that God was speaking to me through the preacher. Crying, I accepted Jesus as my Savior, because I didn’t want to go to Hell. The Lord is beautiful!

Sometimes I see people crying out loud as I preach the Word and, in between their sobbing, they pray, repent of their sins, and give their lives to Jesus. May the brightness of the Lord reach the lives of those who read this message and are not yet saved! When you come, do not act with disdain, but accept the divine offer. Perhaps, you won´t have another chance. At that moment, grab hold of it!

The work belongs to God, and only He can tell when this or another phenomenon will happen, or the time when a person will be ready to accept the offer of salvation. The lost will have his chance. Whoever lives next to the Lord and does His will know the time for all things (Ecclesiastes 8:5). The worker who is never at Christ’s feet loses much; after all, the lack of such proximity prevents him from being used more by Him.

When the time came for Jesus to reveal himself to Saul, the work was instantaneous. The Lord continues to work in the same way. We do not know when the seed we plant will bear fruit, so we have to sow it in the morning, in the afternoon and during the night (Ecclesiastes 11:6). God is perfect and will guide us to do the work. Pray!

In Christ, with love,

R. R. Soares