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Hello and welcome to giveattentiontoreading.com, where you can get your daily dose of the Great Physician’s medicine. Today’s reading is from Acts chapters 27 and 28. I’d like to give attention to Acts 27: 23-24, 43-44.

“For this very night there stood before me an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I worship, and he said, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul; you must stand before Caesar. And behold, God has granted you all those who sail with you.’

Verse 43 says:

But the centurion, wishing to save Paul, kept them from carrying out their plan. He ordered those who could swim to jump overboard first and make for the land, and the rest on planks or on pieces of the ship. And so it was that all were brought safely to land.

There’s a debate going on in the religious world today, and it’s been going on for centuries. The question is–Is it God or is it us? How much of God and how much of us? This story gives me so insight into that question. This story asks the question–Is it God or is it us?–and it gives the resounding answer…YES! 

First of all, we see that these folks were in a shipwreck and yet all of them survived. Who was it? Was it God or was it the people? Well, the angel of the Lord had said that God was granting that all of them should live for the sake of Paul. So it was God. But Luke also records that those who could swim jumped overboard and swam and those who couldn’t grabbed a hold of wreckage and floated to land. And so because of their swimming and their floating, they were saved. So it was the men.

Was it God or the men? YES!

You see, some folks, afraid that we’re going to take glory away from God, don’t want to admit that there’s something we have to do. Other folks don’t want to talk about what God is doing because they’re afraid we’re going to tell people that they don’t have to do anything. What we see in this story is  that the work of these men was only beneficial because God was working on their behalf. It’s like that statement attributed to Augustine: “Without God, I cannot. Without me, God will not. ” If the men hadn’t swam or grabbed hold of the wreckage, God wouldn’t save them. But if God wasn’t going to save them, it wouldn’t matter how much they swam or grabbed hold of the wreckage; they were going to die.

I have no idea exactly what God did in saving these men. But I know the angel says God was the one doing it. When I look at my own life, I have no idea exactly what it is that God is going to do so that I might be saved in the end. I don’t know how He’s going to work in my life today. But that doesn’t change the fact that when I’m done doing what I see in His Word, I need to glorify Him. My work is only beneficial because God is working on my behalf.

So, today, instead of getting bogged down in trying to figure out how much of it’s God and how much of it’s me, I just want to get in His Word. I just want to do what He says because I know He’s working for me. And because He’s working on my behalf, what I’m doing can actually accomplish something.

Praise God for working in our lives!

What are you going to do today?

Thanks again for checking out giveattentiontoreading.com. I’d love to know what you thought about today’s post. I’d love to know what else you got out of today’s reading. So feel free to drop down to the comments section and join the discussion. And don’t forget to come back tomorrow for another dose of the Great Physician’s medicine.

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Hello and welcome to giveattentiontoreading.com, where you can get your daily dose of the Great Physician’s medicine. Today’s reading is from Acts chapters 25 and 26. I’d like to give attention to Acts 26:22.

To this day I have had the help that comes from God, and so I stand here testifying both to small and great, saying nothing but what the prophets and Moses said would come to pass.

Amazing! Paul is on trial for his life. He’s been arrested. He’s put in prison. He’s going to have to go to Rome and face Caesar and has no idea what’s going to happen. But in the midst of all this, he says, “I’ve had the help that comes from God.” What a great attitude, an attitude that I need to have.

How is it in the midst of all these bad things, Paul can say, “I’ve got the help that comes from God”? I think there’s two major things here.

First of all, one, despite all these negative things, he’s still alive. Every day that he’s alive he knows he’s had the help that is from God. Sure, he’s on trial; sure, he’s in prison; but there had been a conspiracy against his life that had been exposed and he was saved.

The second thing is that Paul’s goal is about spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, and, here, he gets the opportunity to speak to both small and great. He’s talking to kings. How many of us would like to talk to the President about the gospel? How many of us are ever going to get that opportunity? And while it came about while being on trial, Paul was able to look at the side of it that said he was getting to talk to kings.

I have the sad tendency to take a look at my life and notice all the bad things. Things aren’t going my way. People aren’t doing what I want them to do. I’m not getting all the situations and events to happen the way I want. So I start to get upset and wonder why God’s not helping me out. But I need to realize I got to eat today; I’ve got clothes today; I’ve got a car that’s working today; I get to spread the gospel today;  I get to talk to people all over the world on this wide web about the gospel of Jesus Christ. Let’s face it; God has helped me out a lot today.

So, today, I need to spend my time seeing God’s help. How about you?

Thanks again for checking out giveattentiontoreading.com. I’d love to know what you thought of today’s post or what else you got out of today’s reading. So drop down to the comments section and feel free to join in the discussion. And don’t forget to come back on Monday for another dose of the Great Physician’s medicine.

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Hello and welcome to giveattentiontoreading.com, where you can get your daily dose of the Great Physician’s medicine. Today’s reading is from Acts chapters 23 and 24. I’d like to give attention to Acts 24:25.

And as he reasoned about righteousness and self-control and the coming judgment, Felix was alarmed and said, “Go away for the present. When I get an opportunity I will summon you.”

Felix makes a mistake here that I make all too often. He procrastinated. I know that what he heard shocked him and made him afraid. It says he was alarmed. He heard something that he just really didn’t want to deal with. And instead of making a decision right then, he thought he could just put it off.

Sadly, I do this all too often. When I’m reading God’s Word and I find a challenge, especially one that frightens me, I tend to think that instead of making a decision right then I can just put it off. It’s as if I sometimes think that putting it of is different from deciding not to do it right now. It’s like those folks who think you can decide not to decide instead of realizing that that’s making a decision not to do whatever it was you were thinking about. And so I see the challenge and I justify in my mind saying, “Oh yes, I accept the challenge, but I’ll get to that tomorrow or next week or even next year.” And I procrastinate.

The only way I can keep from being like Felix is to just do the next right thing. Whatever challenge God puts before me in His Word, I just need to accept it and without getting bogged down in  fear about outcomes and how everybody else is going to feel about it, I just need to do the next right thing.

What’s my life going to be like if I do that? I don’t know. I’m sure there’s going to be tough days. I’m sure there’ll be hard things. I’m sure there’ll end up being rocky relationships because of it. But if I’m doing the next right thing, well, I’m doing the next right thing.

I don’t want to be a procrastinator like Felix. And so, I need to face the challenges. I need to accept what God has said and start working on it today. Not tomorrow. Not next week. Because putting it off is the same as saying, “I’m just not going to do that.”

What are you going to do today?

Thanks again for checking out giveattentiontoreading.com. I’d love to know what you thought about today’s post or what else you got out of today’s reading. So feel free to drop down to the discussion section and put a comment in for us. And don’t forget to come back tomorrow for another dose of the Great Physician’s medicine.

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Hello and welcome to giveattentiontoreading.com, where you can get your daily dose of the Great Physician’s medicine. Today’s reading comes from Acts chapter 21 and 22. I’d like to give attention to Acts 21:27-29.

When the seven days were almost completed, the Jews from Asia, seeing him in the temple, stirred up the whole crowd and laid hands on him, crying out, “Men of Israel, help! This is the man who is teaching everyone everywhere against the people and the law and this place. Moreover, he even brought Greeks into the temple and has defiled this holy place.” For they had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian with him in the city, and they supposed that Paul had brought him into the temple.

Now, I’m well aware that this passage is not in the Bible to teach us something about communication. I understand that it’s telling us about how Paul got arrested and put in prison. But something happens in this passage that happens in my life way to often. And I wanted to share it with you.

These Jews assumed that Paul had brought Trophimus into the temple. They had seen him earlier with Trophimus in the city, and they just presumed. This entire uproar could have been avoided if instead of presuming and assuming and jumping to a conclusion about Paul and what he had done, if they had just talked to him about it and just asked to see if that’s really what had happened.

I make this mistake all too often. I hear something, I see something, and I assume that I understand everything about it. I know the person’s motivations, I know their intentions, I know what they were trying to accomplish, and then I start making accusations and even attacking sometimes based on my assumptions. Very often, I’m wrong about all of it. And if I’d simply taken the time to ask, to inquire, I would have found out there was a completely different story behind what was going on. But instead, I attack and accuse and argue and drive a wedge in relationships that could have been completely avoided.

What I’m having to learn is that instead of jumping to conclusions, I need to talk calmly and clearly and gently. “When you said such and such, it made me think, feel, or perceive such and such. Was that your intention?”  ”When  I saw you do this or that, I thought you were trying to do this. Is that what you meant to do?” If I’m right, I’ve laid the groundwork for a positive discussion about whatever happened. If I’m wrong, I can be corrected and the wedge in the relationship can be avoided.

So, today, I don’t want to presume. I don’t want to assume. I want to inquire. I don’t want to accuse and attack based on my assumptions. I want to talk gently and clearly with my family, with my friends, with folks I come in contact with. Then we can improve our relationships instead of destroying our relationships.

How about you?

Thanks again for checking in at giveattentiontoreading.com. I’d love to know what you thought about today’s post or what else you got out of today’s reading. So feel free to drop down to the comments section and join in the discussion. And don’t forget to come back tomorrow for another dose of the Great Physician’s medicine.

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Hello and welcome to giveattentiontoreading.com, where you can get your daily dose of the Great Physician’s medicine. Today’s reading is from Acts chapters 19 and 20. I’d like to give attention to Acts 19:18-19:

Also many of those who were now believers came, confessing and divulging their practices. And a number of those who had practiced magic arts brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted the value of them and found it came to fifty thousand pieces of silver.

Sometimes, I want to be forgiven and I even want to be set free from sin, but I don’t want to make any sacrifices. These brethren from Ephesus understood if they were going to freedom from their sin, it was going to take more than merely confessing their evil practices. They had to cut off the paraphernalia of their sin. They had to make even deeper sacrifices.

I know that recovering addicts hear this message. They’re told that in recovery they’re learning to play a new game. Because they’re learning to play a new game that means they’ve got to get rid of their old playthings, their old playmates, and their old playgrounds. Instead, they’ve got to find new playgrounds, and develop new playmates, and find new playthings. If they don’t, when times get tough, they’ll just go back to their old games.

This isn’t just about addiction; this is really about any sin. If we want forgiveness, but more importantly, if we want to be set free, we’ve got to get rid of all those old things that take us back into our sins. We’ve got to develop new playmates, get new playthings, and go to new playgrounds. Otherwise, we’re just going to go back to our sins.

I once read of a fellow who said that he had prayed and prayed and prayed that God would take some sin out of his life. Until he finally realized that the reason he was praying that was so that he wouldn’t have to go through the pain of giving it up.

Now certainly, it’s only through God that we can have victory. After all, it was God who defeated Goliath. But let’s not forget, it was David who had to give up the old ways of fighting. It was David who had to cast off the armor of Saul and walk on to the battlefield merely in the strength of the Lord. If you want to walk on to the battlefield in the strength of the Lord, then you’ve got to cast off and cut off all those old playthings and playmates and playgrounds.

You’ve got to walk a new path. You’ve got to sacrifice. What are you going to cut off today?

Thanks again for checking out giveattentiontoreading.com. I’d love to know what you thought of today’s post or what else you got out of today’s reading. So, make sure you drop down to the comments section and join in the discussion. And don’t forget to come back tomorrow for another dose of the Great Physician’s medicine.

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Hello and welcome to giveattentiontoreading.com, where you can get your daily dose of the Great Physician’s medicine. Today’s reading comes from Acts chapters 17 and 18. I’d like to give attention to Acts 17:26.

And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place…

This passage tells me that the concept of the family of man is not just some liberal, whackjob idea; it’s a biblical concept. We’re all a part of that same family. In fact, you and I have the exact same ancestry from Adam to Noah. 

What this means is we need to treat one another like it. Let me see if I can illustrate what I’m talking about by telling you about something that happened to me the other day in a McDonald’s drive-thru line.

I was at one of those McDonald’s drive-thrus where the line splits into two different places to take an order. The guy who pulled in behind me passed me, and I didn’t really think anything about it until I moved up a few spaces and there he was in that second line. Instead of getting in the single file line like the rest of us and splitting there at the last second, he went up and got in that second line ahead of all of us who had been waiting.

I was ticked. I was livid. I was calling him names. I was saying things about him. Until he rolled down his window, stuck his head out, and it was a friend of mine. All of a sudden, my thoughts completely changed. I took back all the things I said about him, the names I called him, the things I said about his mom. Why? Because I knew him. Now, did the fact that I knew him change that what he did was, well, something that he shouldn’t have done? Of course not. But it changed the way I viewed him. Before I knew who it was, I thought the worst of him. Once I recognized there was a connection, then I gave him the benefit of the doubt.

That’s what I’m talking about with this “family of man” concept. I need to recognize that I’m connected to all these folks around me. That lady at the checkout counter who’s taking her sweet time, calling the manager over, and wasting my time…she’s part of the family. The person who cuts you off in traffic because things are rush…he’s part of the family. Whoever it is that you’re working with who’s dropping the ball on that project…part of the family.

Now this doesn’t mean we ignore when folks do things wrong. But it does mean that we treat them just a little bit differently. We remember the connection. We remember that we make mistakes and how we want them to treat us. We want them to remember the connection. We need to treat others like family and keep in mind what it went on to say in Acts 17:27 as it pointed out that God had granted those boundaries of dwelling so…

…that they should seek God, in the hope that they might feel their way toward him and find him.

We need to remember to give that benefit of the doubt and treat others like our family of man so that we might be able to bring them in to the family of God. 

So, today, you and I need to treat each other and the folks we come in contact with like one big happy human family.

Thanks again for checking out giveattentiontoreading.com. I’d love to know what you thought about today’s post or what else you got out of today’s reading. So feel free to drop down to the comments section and join in the discussion. And don’t forget to come back tomorrow for another dose of the Great Physician’s medicine.

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Hello and welcome to giveattentiontoreading.com, where you can get your daily dose of the Great Physician’s medicine. Today’s reading comes from Acts chapters 15 and 16. I’d like to give attention to Acts 16:25-30.

“About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them, and 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 bonds were unfastened. When the jailer woke and saw that the prison doors were open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, supposing that the prisoners had escaped. But Paul cried with a loud voice, ‘Do not harm yourself, for we are all here.’ And the jailer called for lights 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?’”

I know we’re all looking for better ways to get the word about Jesus Christ out to others. We’re hoping to find that amazing video series. Or maybe that stellar blog that we could refer to folks. Or maybe a series of Bible studies that we know is just working wonders. But in this passage we find one of the most effective ways of getting the message of Jesus Christ out.

Just live the message.

Paul and Silas, here in prison, are not actively evangelizing, if you will. While they are there in the stocks, they’re not trying to ask someone if they believe in Jesus or if they’d like to have a Bible study. Instead, they’re just living their faith. They’re praising God. They’re singing hymns. They’re praying. And, apparently, at least one person was listening.

Then when the earthquake hit and faced with fear for his life, the jailer comes in wanting what Paul and Silas have. And he asks them, “What must I do to be saved?”

You see, when we live our faith, folks who are around us are seeing it. They may not be interested today, and they may not be interested tomorrow. But you never know when that earthquake is going to hit. And when it does, they know who they can turn to.

Now don’t misunderstand. I’m not saying to back off on any of the active forms of evangelism that you’re doing. We certainly want to ask folks for Bible studies and invite folks to attend assemblies and classes with us and talk to folks about whether or not they believe in Jesus. But we need to remember that one of the most effective tools for evangelism that we have is living our faith, living for Jesus, and letting folks around us see the fruit.

Today, I want to live for Jesus. Who knows who might see.

Thanks again for checking in at giveattentiontoreading.com. I’d love to know what you thought about today’s post or what else you got out of today’s reading. So make sure you drop down to the comments section and feel free to join in the discussion. Don’t forget to come back on Monday for another dose of the Great Physician’s medicine.

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Hello and welcome to giveattentiontoreading.com, where you can get your daily dose of the Great Physician’s medicine. Today’s reading is from Acts chapters 13 and 14. I’d like to give attention to Acts 14:2-3.

But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers. So they remained for a long time, speaking boldly for the Lord, who bore witness to the word of his grace, granting signs and wonders to be done by their hands.

That passage did not say what I expected it to say. What I expect is, “But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers. So, they got out of dodge quick.” But that’s not what it says. The rejection was coming. The persecution was coming. But Paul and Barnabas didn’t leave. What the text says is that “they remained for a long time, speaking boldly for the Lord.” 

I need to remember that. The tendency that I have is when I think rejection is coming, if I think somebody is not going to like what I have to say about Jesus, I want to back off. I want to keep it quiet and maybe come up with that fool-proof and fail-proof, perfect way that I can talk to them about Jesus. And I don’t want to say anything until I figure that out.

That wasn’t Paul and Barnabas. Paul and Barnabas continued to speak boldly about the Lord. That’s where we need to be. No matter how anybody responds, no matter how we think anybody is going to respond, we need to speak boldly for the Lord. That’s part of what this blog is about. No matter how anybody responds, we want to speak boldly for the Lord here at Give Attention to Reading.

Thanks again for checking out giveattentiontoreading.com. I’d love to know what you thought about today’s post or what you got out of today’s reading. So feel free to drop down to the comments section to join the discussion. And don’t forget to come back tomorrow for another dose of the Great Physician’s medicine.

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Hello and welcome to giveattentiontoreading.com, where you can get your daily dose of the Great Physician’s medicine. Today’s reading is from Acts chapters 11 and 12. I’d like to give attention to Acts 12:12-16.

When he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John whose other name was Mark, where many were gathered together and were praying. And when he knocked at the door of the gateway, a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer. Recognizing Peter’s voice, in her joy she did not open the gate but ran in and reported that Peter was standing at the gate. They said to her, “You are out of your mind.” But she kept insisting that it was so, and they kept saying, “It is his angel!” But Peter continued knocking, and when they opened, they saw him and were amazed. But motioning to them with his hand to be silent, he described to them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. And he said, “Tell these things to James and to the brothers.” Then he departed and went to another place.

I’ve heard people say about this passage, that this showed a great lack of faith on these Christians’ part. What they say is, “Well, here these folks were praying that Peter would get to escape from prison, and when he did, they didn’t believe it.” I’m not sure that’s what’s going on here. I think these folks demonstrate a great deal of faith. They’re praying into the middle of the night. People who don’t believe that their prayers are going to work don’t pray that persistently and that intensely. Rather, I see something else happening. 

I think what’s going in this passage is that these folks were putting God in a box. Sure, they believed that God could respond to their requests that Peter would live. But they must have thought God would do it in a certain way. Maybe changing Herod’s mind, or granting a stay of execution. What had not occurred to them was that God would just miraculously walk Peter out of the prison in the middle of the night. And so they were shocked.

The lesson that I get from this is certainly that if I’m going to pray, I need to have faith. But the bigger lesson is when I pray, I don’t need to put God in a box. God can do what He wants how He wants when He wants the way He wants. And He doesn’t have to answer my prayers the way I expect Him to answer them. Far too often I only think God has said, “Yes,” if He has says, “Yes,” and answers yes the way I expected Him to. The fact is God can grant my requests whatever way He wants.

Now don’t misunderstand. I certainly believe I can say, “Here is what God has said He will do,” based upon His Word. But apart from that, when I make my requests known to God, I need to let God be God and let God and let God decide how things are going to be done. And I just need to put my faith and trust in Him to do the right thing, to do the best thing, and remember that He does, in fact, want to bless me.

So, today, I’m going to make my requests known to God, and I’m going to let God decide how He’s going to answer.

Thanks again for checking out giveattentiontoreading.com. I’d love to hear what you thought of today’s post or what else you got out of today’s reading. So drop down to the comments section and feel free to join in the discussion. Don’t forget to come back tomorrow for another dose of the Great Physician’s medicine.

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Hello and welcome to giveattentiontoreading.com, where you can get your daily dose of the Great Physician’s medicine. Today’s reading is from Acts chapters 9 and 10. I’d like to give attention to Acts 9:36-41.

Now there was in Joppa a disciple named Tabitha, which, translated, means Dorcas. She was full of good works and acts of charity. In those days she became ill and died, and when they had washed her, they laid her in an upper room. Since Lydda was near Joppa, the disciples, hearing that Peter was there, sent two men to him, urging him, “Please come to us without delay.” so Peter rose and went with them. And when they arrived, they took him to the upper room. All the widows stood beside him weeping and showing tunics and other garments that Dorcas made while she was with them. But Peter put them all outside, and knelt down and prayed; and turning to the body he said, “Tabitha, arise.” And she opened her eyes, and when she saw peter she sat up. And he gave her his hand and raised her up. Then calling the saints and widows, he presented her alive.

This passage amazes me every time I get to it. I remember in Acts 7, that Steven, a deacon and a preacher, was executed. The disciples came, picked up his body, buried, mourned, and were done. I know that in Acts 12, James, an apostle, a leader of the church in Jerusalem…he’s going to be executed. I presume the disciples are simply going to pick up the body, bury it, and they mourned, and it’s all said and done.

But Tabitha, a single woman likely, possibly even  a widow, who is neither an apostle, a preacher, a deacon, she’s not a bishop, pastor, or shepherd in the church. She’s a servant who serves widows by making them clothes. She dies and everyone’s in an uproar. Something has to be done about that. Get one of the apostles over here; get her back.

This tells me something about the ranking of roles in the body of Christ. We have a tendency to think those roles that are named in the Bible are the really, really important ones, like bishop, pastor, elder, shepherd; evangelist and preacher; deacon; apostle. And yet it seems in the Bible, the most high-ranking role in the New Testament church is merely a servant.

That makes me have to ask, who am I serving this week? What about you?

Thanks for checking out giveattentiontoreading.com. I’d love to hear what you thought of today’s post or what else you got out of today’s reading. Feel free to drop down to the comments section and join in the discussion. Don’t forget to come back tomorrow for another dose of the Great Physician’s medicine.