Drew Bowles (Parkcrest) - React with praise

Parkcrest is going through Acts and delving into the ways of the early church.

Acts 16:16-40 tells the story of Paul and Silas getting dragged into prison, quite unfairly for casting out a demon. Their reaction is one of praise as they sat in the pitch darkness of a horrific dungeon.

Oh, I know that wouldn't have been my reaction!

I have been struggling lately with the idea of how I react. I know I often react very badly and not at all the way God would have wanted me to. But I also know, like so many things, learning to react and how to react is a process. He's teaching me not to fly off into my own way of thinking, but to seek Him for direction.

But that takes time! In the moment, as situations unfold, our reactions are often instant. I haven't yet figured out how to know exactly the way God wants me to react in the heat of the moment.

That's where the brilliance of this passage comes in. It's so simple, I missed it. They didn't react, rather they took the time to praise God - at that instant. In the time they were praising and praying, God showed up, literally as an earthquake freed them from their bonds and ultimately led to the salvation of the jailer and his family.

That's it! If I can simply react to whatever gets thrown in my path by praising God, my own fleshly reaction can have time to simmer down and I give God space to show up. How many times have I crowded out the Holy Spirit because I am so busy responding in whatever way just pops out of me? Simply praising God rather than answering back in the flesh - that's gonna be hard!