Right Then.....Right Now

Scripture – Acts 11:11-17: ¹¹“Right then three men who had been sent to me from Caesarea stopped at the house where I was staying. ¹²The Spirit told me to have no hesitation about going with them. These six brothers also went with me, and we entered the man’s house. ¹³He told us how he had seen an angel appear in his house and say, ‘Send to Joppa for Simon who is called Peter. ¹⁴He will bring you a message through which you and all your household will be saved.’ ¹⁵“As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit came on them as he had come on us at the beginning. ¹⁶Then I remembered what the Lord had said: ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ ¹⁷So if God gave them the same gift as he gave us, who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to think that I could oppose God?”

Reflection: – “Right then,” Peter said. Just after he had seen his vision, three non-Jewish men arrived. All his life Peter had been taught to avoid contact with people who were not Jews. That, however, was before Christ came into his life.

The Spirit gave Peter more specific instruction. He was to go with the men back to Cornelius’ home. That’s what he did. And what happened there provided convincing proof that God means for all people to know Christ. There are no limits to the family today.

How do you experience the Spirit’s direction? One of the ways I’ve learned to watch for are so-called coincidences. Those get my attention. While it’s not 100% true, most of the time I find them to be signs of the Spirit at work. Sometimes it’s a sign I’m moving in the right direction. Sometimes there’s a call to something right now. Sometimes it’s just a reminder that Christ is alive and interacting in my life. In all of those times I’ve learned to thank God. How about you? How will you experience the Spirit today?