Be Courageous

In Acts 9, Saul is on his way to Damascus basically to persecute the church and throw believers in prison. You probably know about how he was struck blind and had to be led by the hand to Damascus.

The Lord had decided to use Ananias to minister to and heal Saul of his blindness. We know this because when The Lord is talking to Ananias, He mentions that He had told Saul in a dream that Ananias was coming.

So God tells Ananias to go heal Saul and minister to him, and basically tell Saul of his calling. Now Ananias knows about Saul. He even knows that he came with papers that allow him to arrest believers. And what does God ask Ananias to do? Go preach the Gospel to him!

I'm thinking that this is probably something like the equivalent to walking up to a Chinese government official with a Bible and saying, "Can I tell you about Jesus?"

Ananias knew what could happen if he followed God's instructions. He knew that the chances of getting thrown in jail and possibly killed were about 99.9%. And he makes sure God knows, too. He's like, "Uhh, God... you do know that this guy will throw me in prison, right?" And you know why God tells him?

"Go! This man is my chosen instrument..."

Now here is the perfect opportunity for Ananias to be jealous. Really? This sinner, this enemy of the Gospel is chosen to be Your instrument, and I'm not? And of course there's ultimately the fear of getting thrown in prison or killed.

But what does Ananias do? He goes. No more questions asked. It doesn't say anywhere that he wasn't quaking with fear, or doubting himself the whole way there, but he went.

Be courageous. You may not be facing death or prison for the Gospel, but God may have asked you to do something that scares you just as much as ministering to Saul scared Ananias. You may not get all the recognition. You may be a critical piece in someone else's glorious story of redemption, and never get recognized for it. But God gets all the glory anyway. All He asks of us is to be courageous enough to do what He says.

"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for The Lord your God will be with you wherever you go."
Joshua 1:9 NIV