Acts 16:16-18
16 It happened that as we were going to the place of prayer, a slave-girl having a spirit of divination met us, who was bringing her masters much profit by fortune-telling.
17 Following after Paul and us, she kept crying out, saying, “These men are bond-servants of the Most High God, who are proclaiming to you the way of salvation.”
18 She continued doing this for many days. But Paul was greatly annoyed, and turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her!” And it came out at that very moment.
I became very convicted after reading that. Because I would always find myself being annoyed with the wrong person. Paul became annoyed at this spirit of divination, following him around and saying things that were true, it wasn't like it was lying.verse 17.“These men are bond-servants of the Most High God, who are proclaiming to you the way of salvation.” Paul knew,even though it was the truth it came from a wrong spirit, a spirit of divination. Something inside of him became annoyed with that spirit, and he turned to it and began to speak to it and said, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her!”And it came out at that very moment, this was the second member of the European church. I became convicted because I get annoyed too quickly look at verse 18 But Paul was greatly annoyed, and turned and said to the spirit. My problem is that I get annoyed period, but I don't go further and deal with the spirit that is behind the thing that's there. How many are missing from these seats because I got annoyed with them.whether it's being lied to,disrespected,dealing with the same problems,dealing with the same stuff,all the junk that's there.How many are missing from these seats because I don't want my life inconvenienced with the issues of others when God promised to pour out his spirit in those situations? And I finally realized that God was just as interested in my own callousness as He was with the callousness of others.God was just as interested in my own hardness as He was with the hardness of others-God says in a moment I can deliver somebody out in the streets, but it's my laborers that I want to get at as well. I need to be annoyed at the right thing as well as the right person! Evangelism isn't a gift,it's what you are called to do-EVERYBODY! You are called to be a lover of God and a deliverer of men, Jesus said I'll make you fishers of men. It's too easy church to become dependent upon your gifting or attempts to read people. We need to simply realize and remember what our mission in life is. How many people are missing from a seat because your annoyance never took a second step, and spoke to the demonic spirit that was there.God's problem is with the laborer , Not with demons but Chris Floret.As for neighbors, Muslims, or Mormons one word from God can change those lives. God ain't afraid of the Mormons, he can put a hole in those bicycle tires that they ride around in in this city. He can do it in a second. God is coming after my heart!Second thing that I was convicted with was that I speak to much to the people and not to the spirit. But Paul was greatly annoyed, and turned and said to the spirit. I've been convicted of my own cynicism in my own spirit. I've seen so many things happen in my life that I want my heart broken, instead of finding things humorousGod forgive me for those things. God wants to bring deliverance to those people.Third thing that I was convicted with was that I forgot the material that God uses to build His church. He 'd use a woman with a demon spirit, a jailer that just finished beating them up, and a woman that sells purple. That was going to be the building material of the church! The bible says that there are not many wise not many noble, and that you choose the foolish things of this world to confound the wise. That's what I'm going to use to build the church and heal peoples lives with. Louise and I were looking to build bookshelves some years ago, so when I went to the Home depot and asked them how would I go about it- he asked me what kind of wood are you going to be using to build it with ? I said Oak, its all I knew of then He told me the price and it was astronomical, I've asked why is it so expensive, and he answered. You chose the hardest wood that d last the longest. Because the harder the wood the longer it lasts. How many times does God use the hardest people to do what He wants them to do. Think of Saul who would eventually become Paul- in the same chapter that he is getting letters together to kill the Christians, and didn't even realize that in a few verses he was going to come in contact with the resurrected Jesus and be saved. God can take the hardest of the hardest and use em for the glory of God. God loves to use the hardest materials for His Glory. Sometimes God uses strange building materials to build His kingdom, and I just couldn' t reconcile it.
There were three things that God began to show me and it'd be a good thing to jot down.These three verses God began to reach my heart as I've prayed for God to make me a laborer again,someone who'is not being a cynic or claim to be experienced. I'm not called to be a private investigator ,but a deliverer of men. I want to see people like Jesus sees them. This is the story of the five thousand fed Mark 6:34 When Jesus went ashore, He saw a large crowd, and He felt compassion for them because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and He began to teach them many things. The disciples saw there's too many people here we can't feed all these folks, Jesus saw the multitudes and had compassion. The word compassion literally means your guts are wrenched- it's an emotional word. Its not a logical word.it's the we got to do something about the situation at hand. We can become so vain in our lives I want the compassion and guts not the cynicism. Jesus saw them as like sheep without a shepherd.
Secondly not to judge things before the time.1 Corinthians 4:5 Therefore do not go on passing judgment before the time, but wait until the Lord comes who will both bring to light the things hidden in the darkness and disclose the motives of men’s hearts; and then each man’s praise will come to him from God. What's impossible with man is possible with God. God give me guts.
And finally Ephesians 1:18
18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,
Give me eyes to see-open the eyes of my heart lord. Let me see with faith again/hope. Lord I know what I see in the natural, but give me eyes to see what you want to do in the lives of people whom I come in contact with. I want to see what can be,and I want to see what you are able to do Lord. Father give me new eyes. I wonder if Chris Floret was in Phillipi would this woman have been saved, or would I be annoyed and walk away.
