a rare obedience

you know, Paul gets a lot of attention with his drastic conversion and then full out life of service for The Lord. (appropriately so)

but think for a minute about what Ananias did

at the time, Paul (Saul) was a brutal and bitter enemy to Jesus followers. he had a wide-spread reputation for it. and Ananias knew it. but because his Lord said go, he risked imprisonment, stoning, and who knows what else to obey.

their jails aren’t like the cushy retirement-home type of lifestyle we have these days. and death in and of itself is frightening to many, but imagine what it must be like to have it delivered one painful stone at a time.

so the risk was great

but Ananias took it because his Lord asked him to.

what kind of risks do we face today? psha – hardly any – maybe having to turn off the tv or a family member think we’re weird. boo hoo, right? such soft, comfy risks can hardly be compared to Ananias’ dilemma. and yet…. many of us still don’t take it. our Lord calls and we still don’t obey.

we allow fear, friends, circumstances, money, fear (worthy of the repeat) to keep us from saying, i will go.

yes, i think Ananias deserves some recognition for what he did. because it is a rare obedience indeed.

and furthermore, may i just add that sometimes we do something simple, like answer God’s call to go and minister to someone, with no idea whatsoever the heavenly reach that person will have. and you got to be a part of that.

even if you aren’t the person who reaches thousands, you might reach the one who does

our obedience has implications far greater than we can ever realize and may ever see in our lifetime. and it blesses you in the process, for what is better than the fulfillment of knowing you did what your Lord asked you to do?