Another Jewel

“Now get up and stand on your feet. I have appeared to you to appoint you…I am sending you to them to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.” Acts 26:16-18

Ready to polish jewels again? God uses so many unique and wonderful teaching tools if we will just open our eyes. Through Saul’s temporary blindness Christ accomplished physically with Paul what He instructed Paul to accomplish spiritually with others. Christ’s first instruction for Saul was to open their eyes. Saul experienced the physical blindness foreshadowing the spiritual blindness of those whom he would convert. He had to experience the darkness before he could appreciate what he would be encouraging and requiring from others.

The second instruction was the result of opening their eyes to a new life in Christ – turning them from darkness to light. Paul experienced the joy of his restored vision at the end of an appointed time of darkness from God. He could appreciate the sharpness of the leaves on a tree and the beauty of the blue sky which had been hidden from his eyes. At the end of our darkness, we will also experience life with a new intensity and passion if we are grounded in the One who gives life.

Most ministries are born through the suffering and pain of our circumstances. Like Paul, we must experience valleys and darkness if we are to exhort and encourage others to believe, to have faith and to press on towards a new life in Christ.

Only through our pain and suffering will we appreciate the restoration of what we have temporarily lost. When something is removed for a period of time, God will always replace it with a new focus and a new lens. More importantly, we will have a new testimony with passion for our Savior. We will have credibility and authenticity in our encouragement to others.

We can only be ambassadors for Christ when we have experienced our spiritual eyes being opened and the warm Light after a period of darkness.