January 15, 2024 

Your Destination is Important

Rev. Franklin Smith 

Acts 9:1-3-9 And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest, 2 And desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this way, whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem

It’s the morning of your travel to vacation. You get up excited. You gas the car and load your luggage. You are ready. Nothing can bother you. You are looking forward to getting there. You don’t mind the traffic because you know where you are heading and can’t wait to get there. This feeling is different than leaving the house to go to work. It’s not the same as going to run errands or even going out to get a meal. Having a special destination is earned. It’s a reward. 

We should be so excited to do work for the Lord, just the same. Especially in this NEW YEAR.  We should be excited to share the good news of the Gospel. We should be just as excited to change someone’s life by introducing them to Christ.

Saul was excited. He took his mission seriously. He was ready to go and arrest and persecute the followers of Jesus. Saul took it personal that there were people who abandoned God to follow Jesus. But on our way things don’t always go as planned. Planes get delayed. Hotels get overbooked. You run into people that you never thought you would and find yourself having to deal with unexpected encounters. 

God has a way of allowing us to go in a direction only to find another purpose than the one we planned. And in doing so, the reward of the journey is that much greater. 

Saul thought he was going to stop a movement. He thought he was going to make his name great. He thought he’d go and come back boastful. But God had another plan. He allowed Saul to have enough success to build up his confidence to make his journey. Once Saul was prepared, God changed his course. Jesus meets him along the way. This meeting doesn’t stop Saul’s journey, it simply changes the purpose. Rather than interrupting the movement of Christ, Saul begins to change it with the same boldness as he started with.

We can be excited to go places. We can be prepared to accomplish our own wish list for when we get there. But we need to be prepared for God’s interruptions. He may change your course. But you will be prepared?

Do a self-inspection. What gifts did God give you? Are you ready to use them for the glory of the Kingdom of God? If the opportunity was before you, would you recognize it and respond? Or would you hide and try to avoid it? 

If God needed to use you in the moment, would you be as excited to move? 

Your destination is important because everyone you encounter is for a purpose. There is a season to bless someone and a season to be blessed. Are you prepared to use your gifts or does God have to knock you down to the ground to get your attention? 

Even in a crowd, God can isolate you / your ears / your spirit to show you His will. You could be the difference in someone’s life. 

Are you as excited to be used along the way as you are to get there? God wants so much more in 2024.