Vol. 17 No. 15 | April 21, 2014
The longer I live the more convinced I am that we live a significant portion of our live in the “And Then…” phase. It began with the first disciples.
They met Jesus.
And then…He invited them to follow Him.
And then…they put their trust in this man Jesus.
And then…they left everything to follow Him.
And then…they watched Him touch people, heal people, transform people, stand firm against opposition, and reveal His true identity as the Son of God.
And then…He was arrested.
And then…He died on a cross.
And then…they were confused.
And then…they went their separate ways.
And then…they mourned and grieved and tried to makes sense of it all.
And then…they heard that the tomb was empty.
And then…they came together.
And then…they saw Him alive again.
And then…He breathed into them the Spirit of the Living God.
And then…they waited.
And then…they gathered.
And then…Peter preached.
And then…thousands of people responded.
And then…the news of what they were doing began to spread.
And then…the powers and rulers of the world tried to stop them.
And then…they continued to preach and teach the good news of Jesus.
And then…the powers and rulers of the world became more agitated and threatened them.
And then…they did not stop.
And then…the preached and taught with more courage, a stronger resolve, and greater boldness.
And then…the message of Jesus was proclaimed all over the world.
And then…the Kingdom increased.
And then…more and more and more have come to know Jesus as the story continues to be shared throughout the generations.
And then…it is our turn.
We come into the world like everyone else. Beyond our family and circle of friends there is little fanfare and the news of our arrival escapes the notice of most of the world. Our journey begins.
And then…we meet Jesus.
And then…He invites us to follow Him.
And then…we choose to follow Him.
And then…we grow and mature.
And then…we consider making decisions and choices that will determine how we live the rest of our lives.
And then…life comes at us with full force.
And then…we pray for strength.
And then…strength and power come to us through His promised Holy Spirit.
And then…we face more trials and troubles and struggles and the forces of evil.
And then…we lose a loved one.
And then…we hear of another marriage that has fallen apart.
And then…our own marriage and family experiences difficult times.
And then…we hear of another minister who has had a moral failure.
And then…we hear of another son who has wandered off into the far country.
And then…we hear of another daughter who has chosen a path that could lead her to regret or destruction.
And then…we hear of another church that has been rocked by selfishness, division and unrest.
And then…we turn to God in prayer.
And then…we pray more.
And then…we wait for Him to act.
And then…we overcome.
And then…we share our stories of how God has sustained us and strengthened us.
And then…we give testimony of God’s amazing power that has always been at work in us.
And then…others are encouraged and strengthened by the story of our walk with the Lord.
And then…they meet Jesus.
And then…God continues to be glorified.
Tom
© Copyright 2014 Tom Norvell. All rights reserved.