Follow the Instructions
Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Go south to the road—the desert road—that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza. Acts 8:26
The Lord sent word to Philip to tell him go to Gaza. Philip was given specific instructions on exactly which road to take. God did not tell Philip why he was to go that specific way, He just said go. As we read further in the chapter, we learn that God has an Ethiopian eunuch who is reading the scriptures but does not understand them. Philip meets him on the road and explains the writings to him. The eunuch gives his life to Christ and gets baptized then and there.
Many times, when God drops a word into our heart to do something we can find ourselves questioning the instructions. As soon as we do that, we open the door to allow the enemy to change our direction.
One Saturday afternoon, I was preparing to go to the gym to get a run in. It was hot outside so I thought I would just do my run at the gym. As I started to prepare to get ready, I heard the Holy Spirit say, “No, I do not want you to run. I want you to take a walk,” and He gave me specific instructions on which way I should go.
Now, it was 92-degrees outside in the high afternoon. My first reaction was to say “Why?” but I held my tongue. Then a thought came to me. If I’m going to take a walk, why not do it in the area where I know I could burn more calories and go further? But I immediately said “No, I am going to do what I believe God is saying”. See, my pause to question opened the door for Satan to throw in another idea. But praise God I obeyed the voice of the Lord.
I went and did exactly as the Holy Spirit directed me to do, down to what drink he said I could bring with me on the walk. I started on the path and there was nobody out there that I could see. I said, “Okay God, I’m just going to listen to you.” As soon as I said that, I passed a young couple talking off the path in the shade. I noticed a moving truck, smiled and said “Hello”, but neither of them responded.
As I headed further down the path, I heard the young lady yelling and crying. God said “Stop,” so I stopped and asked what He wanted me to do. He said “Wait, turn around and look.” When I turned around the gentlemen had got in the moving truck and was leaving. She was still standing there crying. God said, “Go to her.”
I went to her not sure what to say but God gave me the words, telling her that God said everything is going to be alright. She said she had just prayed, giving everything to God, and had asked Him for help. She started to tell me how she had given up everything for this man. She had turned on her family and everyone around her because she trusted him. She started to cry even more and I said, “Listen, God has heard your prayer. He sent me to pray for you.” I then proceed to tell her that I was heading on a run to the gym, but God told me to take a walk in this hot 92-degree weather so He could give her His message. That is how much He loves her. I asked if I could pray for her and she agreed. She received everything God said and by the time the prayer was over she had stopped crying and was praising God.
That day my task was not exactly like Philip’s, but God still had someone on the road who needed to hear His words. God is the same God, still working through his people, and He expects us to follow all that He tells us to do. Amen. You are on assignment for the kingdom!
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
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