Have Faith in God; Sorrow May Last in the Night, but Joy Comes in the Morning.

Wednesday 29th April 2020. Read Acts 8:1-8, Psalm 66 and John 6:35-40.

“And on that day a great persecution arose against the church in Jerusalem; and they were all scattered throughout the region of Judea and Samaria.” (Acts 8:1)

Sometime ago, someone asked me a question: “When you pray very hard for something with deep faith and trust in God and yet, God does not answer you, what should you do?” As I raised my head, I saw the Crucifix and I immediately remembered that the Bible is filled with stories of persons who prayed and God did not grant their prayers. One of them was Jesus Christ. The truth dawned on me that God never stops being God simply because He does not grant our prayers sometimes.

Our first reading today begins by telling us how a great persecution arose against the church following the death of Stephen. These Christians must have prayed yet they faced cruel persecution. God did not prevent their deaths but then, what began on a sad note ended on a very joyful note. See how our first reading ended: “So there was much joy in that city.” (Acts 8:8).

God doesn’t always grant our prayers but He sure knows how to write straight on very crooked lines. This is why God deserves our complete trust. He may not give us exactly what we want but in the end, we realize that even those events or circumstances we labelled as negative ultimately turn out for our good.

But for the persecution, Philip might not have left Jerusalem. Maybe he would not have known he had the gifts of preaching and healing to work great signs. Like food that has to be cooked, I believe God allows hardship and crisis in our lives to cook us so that our true value comes out.

God never promised that if we serve him, everything will be smooth in our lives. No! The book of Sirach 2:1 says: “My child, when you come to serve the Lord, prepare yourself for an ordeal.” Trials and hard times would surely come our way but even if we die, Jesus assures us in today’s Gospel passage: “This is the will of my Father; that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him should have eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.” (John 6:40).

Like an athlete running with the pole to take the high jump, we must trust God completely even in very difficult moments knowing that when we go up so high to jump, a very soft landing awaits us.  Endure! “Sorrow may last in the night but joy comes in the morning.” (Psalm 30:5)

Let us Pray: Lord Jesus, save me from all forms of discouragement and despair. Amen.

Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. God bless you. (Wednesday of the 3^rd Week of Easter. Bible Study: Acts 8:1-8, Psalm 66 and John 6:35-40).