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“Do not wait for leaders; do it alone, person to person.” – Mother Teresa April, 2026 In the early church, a disciple named Ananias had also learned a lesson that was hard to ignore. He had a “vision” about a man named “Saul,” who had a reputation for persecuting Christians (Acts 9:10-16). In the “vision,” God told Ananias, “‘Get up and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul.’” (vs.11a Evangelical Heritage Version). Ananias replied, “‘Lord, I have heard from many people about this man and how much harm he did to your saints in Jerusalem.’” (vs. 13b EHV). But God told him Saul was a “chosen instrument” who would suffer greatly for the sake of God’s name (vs. 15-16). Saul had been on his way to Damascus, where Ananias lived, when a bright light shone around him (vs. 3). He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying, “‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?’” (vs. 4 EHV). Saul asked, “‘Who are you, Lord?’” The answer came, “‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.’” (vs. 5 EHV). The voice continued, “‘But get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you need to do.’” (vs. 6 EHV). Saul’s companions heard the voice but didn’t know what was happening (vs. 7). When Saul got up, he could no longer see (vs. 8a), so his companions led him by the hand and took him the rest of the way to Damascus (vs. 8b). For the next three days, Saul was blind and refused to eat or drink (vs. 9). Ananias came and laid hands on Saul, and he regained his sight. Then he was baptized, and began proclaiming that Jesus was “‘. . . the Son of God.’” (vs. 17-20). Those who heard him said to one another, “‘Isn’t this the one who raised havoc in Jerusalem among those who call on this name? Didn’t he come here for this very purpose: to bring them as prisoners to the chief priests?’” (vs. 21b EHV). They couldn’t believe he was the same person. They might even have thought he was “up to something.” From Damascus, Saul went to Jerusalem, but the disciples there were afraid of him and refused to believe he was a fellow disciple (vs. 26). It wasn’t until Barnabas spoke on Saul’s behalf that they accepted him (vs. 27). Throughout his life, Saul owned up to what he had done. He told a crowd in Jerusalem, “‘I persecuted this Way to the death, tying up and throwing both men and women into prisons,’” (Acts 22:4 EHV). He wrote to the church in Corinth, “I am the least of the apostles, and I am not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted God’s church.” (1 Cor. 15:9 EHV). He couldn’t change his past, but with God’s help and grace, he could determine a new future. Instead of trying to destroy the early church, he could help it grow by evangelizing to gentiles (Acts 13:46-48). Describing the beginning of Saul’s ministry to the gentiles, Luke, the author of Acts, no longer used the Hebrew version of his name, “Saul,” but the Greek version, “Paul” (Acts 13:13). He no longer behaved as a Jew among them, but lived as the gentiles did (1 Cor. 9:21). He was no longer Saul the Jew, looking down on them, but Paul the Roman, living and working alongside them. God was “up to something,” then and now—transforming lives. Paul told the Christians in Corinth that they were “. . . being transformed into [the Lord’s] own image, from one degree of glory to another.” (2 Cor. 3:18b EHV). The same grace and power can transform you and me. As we remember Christ’s death and resurrection, I pray that God will be “up to something” in each of our lives, so that we will live and work alongside our neighbors to the glory of God. “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared in advance so that we would walk in them.” (Eph. 2:10 EHV.) Copyright © 2026 by David Phelps
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