Acts 1:22-26
"Judas must now be replaced. The replacement must come from the company of men who stayed together with us from the time Jesus was baptized by John up to the day of his ascension, designated along with us as a witness to his resurrection."
They nominated two: Joseph Barsabbas, nicknamed Justus, and Matthias. Then they prayed, "You, O God, know every one of us inside and out. Make plain which of these two men you choose to take the place in this ministry and leadership that Judas threw away in order to go his own way." They then drew straws. Matthias won and was counted in with the eleven apostles.
Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved.
One of the most puzzling questions many have is, “How do you know when you’ve truly heard from God?” Few, if any of us, get a lightning bolt… much less an audible Voice that tells us how to proceed. So how do you know when you are really hearing from God? As I read this scripture passage, I had to laugh when I got to the part where the people prayed to God for an answer… and then “drew straws.”
Surely picking a name out of the hat or “drawing straws” is not how God communicates with us… or is it? If you go back and read the verses in Acts 1 leading up to this passage, you will see that the disciples were following God’s word from scripture… replacing Judas, who had fulfilled prophecy and betrayed Jesus, then killed himself on a farm he bought with the dirty money. There were about 120 people gathered together, including Jesus’ mother Mary, His brothers, the disciples, and other followers.
Two names were placed in nomination, and then they prayed before drawing a name of one of the nominees. The more I thought about this, the more I realized what the message of this passage is for us today. God shows up in amazing, unexpected places. And He very well may tell us to “draw straws” for our answer. But the KEY to the passage comes before the name was drawn. The most important part of the passage is the verse where the people ask God to “make plain which of these two men you choose to take the place in this ministry and leadership.”
As long as we are communicating with God and asking Him to guide or steps and our choices, He can utilize any tool or method to deliver our answer. If you have a hard choice to make, and God plainly directs you to “draw straws,” then do it. If He sends you an audible message in the form of advice from a trusted Christian brother or sister that you cannot shake… that’s probably what you are supposed to do. If you just know in your gut that one choice is right over another, God is probably giving you that physical nudge. If you have prayerfully sought God’s guidance, He can show up to answer in amazing ways that may even seem off-the-wall to some.
How do you know when you’ve heard from God? When you have spent time talking with Him and done all of the necessary preparation… then listened… God will show up. Whatever He is telling you to do… however He is reaching you and giving you the solution…don’t hesitate to follow through on His message. Have you consulted God about your decisions for today? Eenie, meenie, miney, moe… who has some straws to draw?
©2012 Debbie Robus
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