[Acts: Inspiration For Transformation Series] God Of GlorySample

Restored Completely by His Love

Warren Beemer

As Peter and John approached the temple, the lame man at the temple gate didn’t ask for healing. He requested alms, a simple coin in his cup. He’d been lame all his life and had a fixed routine. He sat outside the gates every day, begging. The coin would bring only temporary relief. The clanging of the currency in the cup would be enough to encourage him to keep calling. He didn’t realize that Peter and John could give him so much more than spare change.

This man who depended on people to carry him around every day probably could not imagine himself healed. The man was an outsider, never able to enter the temple, and it seems he had accepted that as his destiny.

He was mistaken. Through God’s power, Peter healed him and he entered the temple “walking, and leaping, and praising God,” as we read in Acts chapter 3. He did things he possibly never thought possible. Without a word, he testified of God’s miraculous power! 

Like the beggar, we often plead for far less than the Father desires to give us. We think we’re not worthy or that our situation is too far gone. We might not even realize that God is able to do what we need, so we don’t ask. We shake our empty cup at whoever passes by, hoping they can give us just enough to get by. We can become so empty that we think anything will do to fulfill us, so we settle for any source of relief, any relationship, or any opportunity just to escape our situation.

Our loving God gazes intently at us. He looks past our faults and sees our need. Peter knew that what the lame man really needed was more than the temporary fix of a clank in his cup. God knows you and me. He knew us before we were born. He knew what our struggles would be—the things that would handicap us. When we look to God and expect to receive His provision, He never disappoints.

Respond:

God is able to give you more than you could ever ask. He wants to give you more than a temporary fix. He desires to restore your life in every area that’s decayed, and everyone will see you walking, leaping, and praising God. Open all the lifeless areas of your life to God today and see what God will do!