"And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness." Acts 4:31Several years ago, Angela and I went to Florida with her parents and rented a houseboat for the week on the St Johns River. It was nice but the people that rented the boat to us told us that if we wanted to experience the real beauty of it we needed to go to a particular inlet off of the river. As we passed from the murky river into this particular inlet we noticed that the water became crystal clear and cool. This was the site of a natural spring, the beauty of which was breath-taking. The time of year was August and the heat was almost unbearable but we could get into this water and really cool-off, it was a refreshing oasis from the heat of that August day.The reality is that every child of God needs a refreshing that they can run to when the heat of life is turned up. The devil goes about to steal, kill, and destroy, and his duty is to turn as many people as possible away from God. The way that he does this is by throwing roadblocks in their way that are intended to steal their joy, peace, and faith. In Acts 3 and 4 you can see clearly the way in which the enemy uses the Jewish leaders to hinder the work of Peter and John. He attempts to strip from them their hope in Christ, but the devil underestimated these disciples of Jesus and their willingness to rejoice even in tribulation. When the work became too difficult to bear, Peter, John and the rest of the disciples turned their attention towards heaven and prayed. By doing this, they had yielded themselves completely to the will of the Father and were filled with the Holy Ghost. This was the refreshing that the disciples so badly needed during this trial of their faith. The outpouring of the Holy Ghost in Acts 2 was amazing but by the time we get to Acts 3 the disciples needed a fresh outpouring of God's Holy Spirit. You also need the same refreshing because you also need the same boldness to proclaim the name of Jesus in your world. Not just on Sunday when the music is right, but more importantly in your prayer closet where you have yielded your life completely to the Father and can receive the very same outpouring of God's Holy Spirit as the disciples in the Acts account. My prayer for you this week is that you will recognize that you can never accomplish God's plan for your life within your own ability, you must rely on the power of Holy Spirit to help you.
