“Saul fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him,
“Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?”
(Acts 9: 1-20 The Holy Bible, New Century Version, 2006)

In my opinion, Saul’s conversion is one of God’s most dramatic interventions in life of the early Christian church. Saul was a very determined man. He had the support of the establishment in Jerusalem. He was on a single-minded mission to eliminate the followers of Jesus Christ. Then in one great flash of light and a voice from heaven, he becomes just as zealous in his new mission of conversion of the Gentile world.

Witnesses hear the voice and see the light but cannot see who speaks the words. They take the blinded Saul to Damascus where he prays and fasts, while waiting for the Lord to send an answer. The answer comes in the form of the faithful Ananias (he of “Here I Am, Lord” fame). The Lord appears to Ananias and tells him to go to Saul and cure his blindness.

Now, Ananias knows Saul for his reputation has preceded him. He is just a little reluctant to put himself into the path of Saul’s sword. But the Lord assures him that Saul has been assigned a greater mission and is waiting for Ananias to make the “scales” fall away from his sightless eyes.

Ananias, in true faithful servant fashion, obeys, the scales fall away from Saul’s eyes and Paul becomes one of Christ’s champions in the early church. Sometimes, I think that I need a voice from Heaven and a great flash of light for the message to really sink into my heart.

But isn’t that what I have every day? I have the voice of God in my heart all the time. I need to listen to it. All around me, I see examples of God’s work and His unconditional love. In my own life, when I bring my will into accord with God’s will, my life is serene, and I am at peace. Listen and let God’s love and grace work in your life.

Terri