July 22, 2018 · Acts 13:1–3

Set Apart

Now in the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch) and Saul. While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, "Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them." So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off.

“They had no clue what was going to happen. They didn't know where they were going. They needed wisdom from someone who knew how to get them through that treacherous cave. They needed someone that they had to trust in to save their lives. They were completely beholden. And I think about my own life, and I think about what was happening there, and you know what, I'm going to be honest, I kind of felt like the waters are coming in. The waters are coming on my head. I'm going to be, Lord, what are you doing? Why is this happening? It looks bleak, dangers around the corner. You don't know what to do, you don't know what to say, you don't know where to go. And the time comes in life, we need direction, we need to hear from someone who knows. And so, as I've seen the kind of waters rising in my own life, and I love God, so I just call out to God. God, save me, show me — did you call me? Give me direction, give me some sense of where to go. … But we don't know what he's saying, or it's hard to hear his voice, his darkness, the caves. How do we discover God's direction in our lives? How do we know that we hear his voice? How am I supposed to follow him when the water's rising?”