Acts 9:1-31; Greatness

Paul was sincere; no one could question that. He was sincerely wrong for a while and it cost the lives of many people. But he was always sincere. Likewise, he was transparent. What he believed, he proclaimed -- whether it was the message that the Messiah had not come or the message that he had. Perhaps it was for these characteristics that people were drawn to him and that God used him in great ways.

But was the work of Ananias and Barnabas any less impressive? Ananias knew why Paul was coming to Damascus and responded to God's call anyway. Probably he and his family anticipated that this was a call to martyrdom or at least imprisonment, which would mean pain and poverty for his family. Barnabas had no vision from God to prompt him when he reached out to Paul. While others ran away, he ran towards. Taking Paul in as a new believer meant risking his reputation and perhaps his life as well.

I know a few Pauls that are well recognized public figures; I am also blessed to know a few Ananias & Barnabas people that launched the Pauls. Without them, the well known figures would never have existed. Several of them have passed on now, dieing like they lived, in humble obscurity. Yet they died knowing they had responded to the visions and calls in their own lives. They stepped into the gap when others would not and God used them to accomplish one major work that led to thousands of works in someone else.

We spend a lot of time honoring the Pauls and ignoring the Ananias and Barnabas people. Seems to me that we don't have a lot of control over which type of person we will be -- that is up to our gift mix and how God decides to use us. What does lie within our control is whether or not we will respond when God calls. Paul, Ananias and Barnabas each had a choice to be obedient or not. Each stepped out on faith. Each was blessed to be used by God.

As humans we can't see far enough down the road to know how we will be used but we can see windows of opportunity -- a chance to help someone, a moment to do a good deed, an opportunity for kindness or mercy. These we can see. These we can respond to. Greatness is not ours to choose; obedience is.

Romans 16:1-19; Greetings

I hung up the phone last night after talking to my friend in Venezuela and made sure I said goodbye in an appropriate Venezuelan way. Not only did I say "goodbye" in three different ways but I also sent "saludos" (greetings) to each of the other family members. To not have done so would have demonstrated my self interest and lack of concern for others. When reading the first of chapter 16, it sounds exactly the same.

Then Paul throws a "curve ball". He reminds them that not everyone is really after their friendship; they need to be wise about who they give their hearts to. What a difficult balance. Be loving and be wise. Build genuine authentic relationships but be wise in who you do it with. Keep your guard up a litle but once someone passes the test, love them deeply.

Maybe today I'll take a relationship inventory. Have I chosen wisely? Have I developed deep bonds? Who are my "garden friends" that I can count on during "garden of Gethsemane" type moments?

In Venezuela (and many other Latin American countries) we say "Dime con quien andas, y te diré quien eres" (Tell me who you walk with and I'll tell you who your are). I think Paul would have liked that saying.