Look For God in the Midst of Your Trials

Scripture

Our verse for today comes from Acts 12:1, ” Now about that time Herod the king stretched out his hand to harass some from the church. “

Background

You know, I’ve never been a king before. I’ve never even played one on tv. But in the 6th grade, we students performed a Little Rascals skit, and I got to play Spanky. Now, one of their best skits was where Spanky played Mark Antony from the play Julius Caesar, and he was dressed up on stage, delivering the famous, ” Friends, Romans, countrymen ” speech as part of a contest. Originally, Spanky hated that he had to perform and wanted to fail miserably, so he arranged for all of his buddies to sit in the audience and interrupt him and throw things at him. But then he learned of a little girl who was poor and in need, so he decided to try and win the competition for her. Unfortunately, he was unable to get the message to his buddies, so they went ahead with the previous plan. Well, the act turned into such a comedic farce, with Spanky using his Roman shield to block the shots coming from the boys’ pea shooters, that he ended up winning the first prize anyway.

Application

Well, all of that silliness made me think about the numerous and weighty responsibilities that a king has. And for Herod, grandson of Herod the Great, with all that he had to do, for some reason he decides to add harassing the Christians to his plate. I picture him calling his servants to himself with the wave of a finger, giving them their instructions, and sending them on their way with the brush of his hand. And sometimes our lives can feel like the might of a king is at work to harass and vex us. From the very outset of the day, anxiety or sadness can greet us before we hit the shower, and his minions seem to be around every corner. But even though Herod managed to have James killed, when he went for Peter, imprisoning him in hopes of making his death a huge spectacle before everyone after Passover, God did some work of His own, and sent His messenger to set him free. The oppression and mistreatment turned out to be the path to God’s deliverance. So if your day feels like it’s under the heavy hand of an evil king, expect the chains to be loosened, and look for God in the midst of the trial.

Charge

As we seek Him today, thank God that He has made you part of His body, the body that is under attack from the evil one. Ask Him for strength and grace to get through the trials that may come your way.