Saturday, December 4, 2010

Not in a corner!


Today, reading when Paul stated in Acts 25:26 ~ I speak boldly, for I am sure these events are all familiar to him, for they were not done in a corner! I got to thinking about corners.
Corners of the rooms when we were young sometimes we were placed in the corner for timeout, corners of a boxing match and the coach yelling get out of the corner, or the referee telling each fighter to go to their corners..Corner.
Have you ever felt cornered? You see someone headed towards you and you don't have an answer to the question, they have been asking? Or you do have the answer you just don't want to give it?
What did Paul mean? I think he meant that he wasn't hiding in a corner reading to make a run for it - no he was out in public. He was speaking very boldly "words of truth". Think about it. When someone wants to make a quick get away or maybe they don't feel good about what they are boldly speaking they aren't out in a temple speaking for all to hear. No, perhaps they are in a corner of the room quietly speaking with not a lot of witnesses.
The boxing corners really got me thinking. Neutral ground, retreat...Paul believed with all his heart everything he was preaching and he wasn't going to retreat to a corner or even lessen his stance. He believed and he was going to shout it boldly with all his might! No dancing around the ring or in the corner for Paul, not he walked boldly to the temple and professed all that Jesus did! Do you walk boldly or shrink into the corner, when you share your faith?
Evangelism isn't easy, but we are called to share His Word and His Love with others! I believe our walk everyday should be part of sharing with others. Our actions speak a lot louder than words at times, so let them speak boldly as well!
Sweet blessings,
Debbie

1 comment:

Frankie said...

Debbie, I knew that Paul was in prison on and off during his writings, but I was struck by Felix's statement in Acts 24:25-27.

After listening to Paul, Felix became frightened and told Paul to, "Go away for now." "When it is more convenient, I'll call for you again." TWO YEARS passed as Felix left Paul in prison to gain favor with the Jewish people. In fact Felix left Paul for Festus to deal with. It all reminded me a bit of the way Jesus' trial was conducted.