Scatter and share

“Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went. Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Christ to them.” Acts 8:4-5 BSB

On November 10, the New York Times published the headline, "Athletes in a Ravaged Louisiana Town Try to Run Back to Normalcy.” The writer went on to say: On an afternoon in late October, Londyn Resweber, 14, ran into the twilight of disaster. Little was intact two months after Hurricane Ida pummeled Louisiana’s only inhabited barrier island with sustained winds of 150 miles per hour and a storm surge measured as high as 11 feet. Almost everything that holds a town together had been blown apart. In spite of all that, though, Londyn Resweber continued to train for the state country championship coming up on Monday. Last year, as an eighth grader, Resweber finished fifth in the varsity girls’ race. She aspires to win this year, training daily, posting her times online with her teammates, who remain scattered like roofing shingles across Louisiana, Texas, Alabama, Mississippi and Ohio.

And you know, when it comes to being scattered or separated from our teammates, the Bible illustrates how crucial persecution was in causing the believers to scatter which spread the Good News of the Gospel outside the walls of Jerusalem. In fact, persecution was the very thing that caused Phillip to travel to Samaria, a city considered unclean and a place Jews refrained from going, to proclaim “the Christ to them.” And in an effort to remind you why it's so important that we go out of the walls of the church and our own city limits as well, consider this... the majority of people don’t come to Jesus through entering a church building and listening to a professional preacher; they come to Jesus through people like you and me who meet them where they’re at. 

So remember this my friend... you and I can be just like Phillip, who stepped way outside his comfort zone to share the Good News. We can proclaim the Christ wherever God calls us to and to whomever God leads us to by simply being obedient and saying, "Here I am Lord. Send me."

Heavenly Father, thank You for reminding us that the approaching persecution of the church is not something we should fear but something that should excite us since it will only serve to spread the Good News with those in need of hearing it. Please give us the same boldness and courage that Phillip had Lord so that we would unhesitatingly travel into places where we might not be welcomed or even safe to proclaim the saving grace of Jesus Christ. It’s in your precious name we pray Jesus. Amen.

Happy Running!!!