Friday, August
11, 2017
Meanwhile, a Jew named Apollos, an eloquent speaker who knew
the Scriptures well, had arrived in Ephesus from Alexandria in Egypt. He had been taught the way of the Lord, and
he taught others about Jesus with an enthusiastic spirit and with
accuracy. However, he knew only about
John’s baptism. When Priscilla and
Aquila heard him preaching boldly in the synagogue, they took him aside and
explained the way of God even more accurately.
Apollos had been thinking about going to Achaia, and the brothers and
sisters in Ephesus encouraged him to go. They wrote to the believers in Achaia, asking
them to welcome him. When he arrived
there, he proved to be of great benefit to those who, by God’s grace, had
believed. He refuted the Jews with
powerful arguments in public debate. Using
the Scriptures, he explained to them that Jesus was the Messiah.
Acts 18:24-28(NLT)
Apollos was
an excellent, eloquent orator, who got introduced to Jesus and began spreading
the word like an itinerant evangelist.
That enthusiastic spirit and sharp mind working together got the
attention of more mature believers, Priscilla and Aquila, who helped sharpen Apollos’
focus and ministry for Christ. The whole
church at Ephesus encouraged the young man to go forward, and Apollos was used
of Christ to reach many for the Kingdom.
God uses
many different ways and people to build His Kingdom. We all have people who have laid building blocks
of discipleship into our lives. I’ve had
many.
Yesterday
marked the two year anniversary since my Dad went to be with Jesus. He was a major influence in the way I look at
everyday/everywhere evangelism. Dad
never made a big deal of formal programs or presentations, but he made it a
point to connect with people every day with humor and encouragement. A building block a day!
I gained
another building block yesterday when Elizabeth and I went to Winston to get
her bee and wasp allergy shots, and also the Veteran’s Administration to drop
off some papers. The entryway has a
metal detector apparatus you have to go through, as with all federal buildings
these days. The two uniformed and armed
men help you through the process. The
older one first helps you put all your metal stuff in the basket that goes
through the x-ray machine. On the other
side of the machine and walk-thru metal detector stands the other guard.
I said “Good
afternoon”. He smiled and answered: “Hey, that’s a nice voice you got there…I’ll
trade you for it.”
I
replied: “You wouldn’t want what goes
with this voice; stage 1 cancer on the vocal cords…thanks to Agent Orange…1967
Vietnam.”
The young
man’s expression sobered and, pointing to the VA office door, he said: “Well, I sure hope everything goes well for
you in there.”
I smiled at
him and said: “It’s all good, because
God is still good!”
From behind
me came the echo from the other guard: “All
the time! You know it!”
I walked on
noticing that all three of us had smiles and a brightened day; building blocks
of faith and Kingdom brotherhood firmly holding us up.
For You Today
Have you
spent a little time lately thanking God for those who have helped build part of
the Kingdom wall in you in your journey?
NOTES
[1] Title Image: By Pixabay.com
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