READING: Acts 1-4, Psalm 110
“When they had prayed, the place where they were assembled was shaken.”
Acts 4:31
How I long to see such things happen!
The religious leaders had ordered Peter and John not to preach in the name of Jesus anymore, but they knew were “unable to stop speaking about what we have seen and heard” (Acts 4:20). The warnings from the religious leaders did not stop the disciples, for they next prayed for boldness to continue speaking: “’. . . grant that your servants may speak your word with all boldness . . . .’ When they had prayed, the place where they were assembled was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God boldly” (Acts 4:29-31).
When they had prayed, the place where they were assembled was shaken. Those are the words that grab my attention today. I know that prayer is powerful. I’ve read about it in the Bible. I’ve seen its effects on others. I know what it’s meant in my life. But I’ve never seen a place shaken under the power of prayer. In Acts 4, it was as if an earthquake moved a building under the power of prayer.
I realize that the Word speaks of a literal shaking in Acts 4. God may choose to do that if He wishes, but all I’d like to see is a people so committed to prayer that their whole world is shaken up. Nothing, it seems to me, remains the same when expectant, powerful prayer becomes a part of our life.
ACTION STEPS:
- Ask God to shake up your life regarding prayer.
- Tell somebody about your prayers that God has answered recently.
PRAYER: “God, fall on us in Your power. Help us to speak boldly about Jesus.”
TOMORROW’S READING: Acts 5-8
