Paul: Past, Present, and Your Life’s PurposeSample
But When God…
”But when God showed up, everything changed.” These words perfectly capture the power of God in our lives. Just like Paul, we, too, can experience a complete change when God gets hold of our lives. Paul was on his way to Damascus to arrest more Christians when suddenly a bright light from heaven appeared and he heard a voice calling his name. It was then that God showed up in his life and everything changed. Paul was transformed from a zealot into a powerful apostle, spreading the good news of Jesus Christ to the world.
”But when God“ is a phrase that can divide our lives into two parts — before and after. Before that moment, we may have been struggling with sin, family problems, or a difficult past. But when God shows up, everything changes. He sets us free from our sins and offers us a new life in Him. He brings peace to our families and heals our past.
To experience this in our lives, we need to be ”but when God“ Christians. No matter the situation in front of us, we must know that He is present in every aspect of our lives — our economy, our businesses, our families, and even our hospitals. When we know God is there, we can trust that He will work wonders. We may not always understand how He is working, but we can trust that He is always at work. In our families, God can bring healing and restoration. The sins that once seemed so apparent in our lives can be overcome when we surrender them to God and ask for His forgiveness. No matter how dark it may seem, our past can be redeemed when we lay it at the cross and trust in the power of Jesus’ sacrifice. We, like Saul, can be known as one thing, and then when God intervenes, we are known as someone else: as a person who is a friend of God, a Christian who has plenty of “but when God” moments.
”But when God” is a powerful phrase that can change our lives forever. When we invite God into every aspect of our lives, we can trust that nothing will be the same. It may take time, and we may not see it in this lifetime, but we know He is doing things that we will never understand fully until we see Him face-to-face. May we be ”but when God” Christians, inviting Him into every aspect of our lives and seeing His power at work. What in your life needs a “but when God” intervention? Where must you trust He is working?
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About this Plan
Paul’s past was filled with misdirected passion. But when God showed up, Paul was radically changed. God forgave Paul for his past sins and then used him to be one of the greatest Christians in the history of the faith. If God forgave Paul, He can forgive anyone and give them purpose. Paul changed the world because he allowed God to change him.
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We would like to thank Gregg Matte, the senior pastor of Houston’s First Baptist Church, and El Centro Network for providing this plan. For more information, please visit: https://houstonsfirst.org and http://www.elcentronetwork.com/