Reading 1
Acts 16:22-34
The crowd in Philippi joined in the attack on Paul and Silas,
and the magistrates had them stripped
and ordered them to be beaten with rods.
After inflicting many blows on them,
they threw them into prison
and instructed the jailer to guard them securely.
When he received these instructions, he put them in the innermost cell
and secured their feet to a stake.
About midnight, while Paul and Silas were praying
and singing hymns to God as the prisoners listened,
there was suddenly such a severe earthquake
that the foundations of the jail shook;
all the doors flew open, and the chains of all were pulled loose.
When the jailer woke up and saw the prison doors wide open,
he drew his sword and was about to kill himself,
thinking that the prisoners had escaped.
But Paul shouted out in a loud voice,
“Do no harm to yourself; we are all here.”
He asked for a light and rushed in and,
trembling with fear, he fell down before Paul and Silas.
Then he brought them out and said,
“Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”
And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus
and you and your household will be saved.”
So they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to everyone in his house.
He took them in at that hour of the night and bathed their wounds;
then he and all his family were baptized at once.
He brought them up into his house and provided a meal
and with his household rejoiced at having come to faith in God.
Gospel
Jn 16:5-11
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Now I am going to the one who sent me,
and not one of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’
But because I told you this, grief has filled your hearts.
But I tell you the truth, it is better for you that I go.
For if I do not go, the Advocate will not come to you.
But if I go, I will send him to you.
And when he comes he will convict the world
in regard to sin and righteousness and condemnation:
sin, because they do not believe in me;
righteousness, because I am going to the Father
and you will no longer see me;
condemnation, because the ruler of this world has been condemned.”
Meditation: Acts 16:22-34
What must I do to be saved? (Acts 16:30)
What a wonderful rescue story! Jailed for preaching and performing miracles in the name of Jesus, Paul and Silas spent their prison time praising God at the top of their voices. They believed that no matter what their circumstances, Jesus was still the Lord, and his plan was moving forward. Suddenly, God intervened dramatically with an earthquake that broke their chains and opened the prison doors.
No one would have blamed the apostles if they had hightailed it out of there. After all, they had important work to do for God! It wouldn’t have been their problem if the jailer who had brutalized them committed suicide because he knew he’d be punished for letting them escape. But instead, they stayed put to see what more God had for them right there.
Sure enough, the jailer fell to his knees before them and asked to know the Lord. More striking than the earthquake was the presence of Christ in these men who cared about the jailer’s salvation more than their safety. They forgave him and—even more important—enabled him to experience God’s forgiveness.
Many of us are high-energy people with a list of things we want to accomplish. When some trial or difficulty sidelines us, we become frustrated. We may even forget to praise our Father, who loves us in all circumstances. And then, when he finally does rescue us from a difficult situation, we dust ourselves off and charge ahead as before.
This isn’t always a bad thing. But sometimes God asks us to rise up and be different. Sometimes the best thing we can do is not lose our peace, even in the face of injustice or in the midst of a struggle. Often, it is the way that we hold our ground that strikes people the most deeply—far more than the words we speak.
You may have to wait patiently for a bit before you see God work through you—and it may not always come through high drama like today’s reading. Still, if you listen closely and try your best to hold onto your joy, the witness of your love and peace will make a difference in someone else’s life.
“Lord, help me to still my anxiety and listen for your gentle direction.”
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