Heralds Digest

“But  at midnight  Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.” ‭‭Acts‬ ‭ 16:25 ‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ https://www.bible.com/114/act.16.25.nkjv   Reliance on reactive preaching is bound to send out negative spoilers to some carefully packaged good intentions. There may probably be good reasons to get mad at people’s actions and inaction, and even the expression of frustration to negative circumstances or the apparent lack of divine intervention. When Paul and Silas got stocked in prison for doing everything right, only God knew the detailed content or lyrics of their prayer and hymns to God that fascinated the attention of the prisoners. However, we know that it must be void of disappointment, regrets, or negative concerns. They were probably praising God for the grace and opportunity to fellowship with God, in spite of the apparent negative situation and circumstances. Obviously, the prisoners (including the keeper of the pris...

“But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were loosed.” ‭‭Acts‬ ‭16:25-26‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ http://bible.us/114/act.16.25-26.nkjv While the content of praises to God is straightforward, the context of every praise worship is often complicated. Praising God for what He has done is easier than worshipping the Creator of heaven and earth for who He is and what He knows about our prevailing situations and circumstances. Knowing fully well that what Paul and Silas knew about what God has done permitting their persecution and imprisonment does not warrant praise, we know that the context of their praise must be centred on the superior knowledge of God and their confidence in His ability to bring good out of a seemingly ugly situation. Fulfilment of promises for provision an...