Re:Verse reading–Acts 16:11-34 (day two)
And suddenly there came a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison house were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were unfastened. vs. 26
It’s hard to imagine, but prayer and praise can break bonds that hold you captive. We don’t know what sort of mental state Paul and Silas were in after being arrested. Worried, angry, sad? Perhaps all or none, but scripture is silent in regards to that. What we do read is their response to setbacks and adversity. When they were ostensibly at their lowest we read that they chose to sing. With all the scriptures that call us to worship God, and all the Psalms that are devoted to just that is it any wonder when the Lord literally breaks the chains that bind Paul and Silas when they turn their praise to God through adversity?
You may not be locked in the inner cell of a prison, but your heart may be. You may not feel like singing, but that is just the time to start. Sing through the frustration, the pain, the rejection, and turn your heart to praise. There cannot be room for both. God will break your chains. Let’s sing.
I believe in the power of desperate prayers. From my perspective, through singing as a form of prayers and praise, Paul and Silas turned their setbacks and adversity to comebacks and victories. They turned to the Lord and God proved His presence through the effects of the earthquake. The earthquake was the testimony of His presence, His power and His authority.
Only God can break the undesired situations and give us hope and victorious outcomes if we are His followers and believe in Him. He is the only one with supernatural power. He is worthy to follow and to praise for. Let’s sing!!