Alternate Endings
“And a vision appeared to Paul in the night. A man of Macedonia stood and pleaded with him, saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” Acts 16:9
Have you ever wondered what your life would be like if you had made some different choices along the way? Maybe it was a decision you made or maybe it was someone else that made a decision that altered your world. Today’s text is about the apostle Paul who had a dream (vision at night) of someone calling for him to come over to Macedonia to help. Wow! This “dream” completely changed the direction that his ministry team was heading. They were on their way to Asia, but they were forbidden to go by the Holy Spirit. Two times they tried to go in one direction, but the Holy Spirit stopped them. How interesting! If Paul had pressed through and ignored the Holy Spirit, Paul’s life would have had an entirely different outcome. Instead of going to Europe and planting churches there, he would have gone to Asia to plant churches instead. This decision had lasting effects that we are still seeing results of today.
There are many examples in the scriptures that also could have had alternate endings. Because of life choices, we can see that Moses, Joshua, Jonah, and just about everyone else in the Bible could have made different decisions in their lives if God had not intervened. Moses was content to stay on the back side of a mountain, never considering that God was going to lead him to deliver His people out of bondage. How different would his life have been if he had chosen to stay there instead of following God. Joshua was forced to stay an extra forty years in the wilderness because of a group of other people that were unwilling to follow God’s direction. His life would have look very different if he decided he wasn’t going to stay under the leadership of Moses and wait for God’s promise. Jonah flat out ran away from God instead of obeying Him. The list could go on and on. It’s no telling how differently their lives would have ended up if they had not stayed their course, but one thing is for sure, they probably wouldn’t have made it into the Book.
Be encouraged today because no matter how far Moses was from Egypt, and no matter how far Jonah ran away, as soon as they repented, God faithfully got them back on track. Even Joshua who was knocked off course by other people, remained faithful until it was time to pick up God’s plan again. God’s plan for the space of time that these were on the earth was completed because they chose to follow God’s “alternate ending”. I recognize that I spend a lot of time trying to encourage everyone to seek out what God has planned, but the reason is because it is the purpose you have been given in life and the only thing that really matters. My point is that at some point in your life, you will come face to face (so to speak) with God. A life choice will be placed in front of you and you will be forced to choose a direction with or away from God. You may not even realize that you are facing Him, but that doesn’t make you any less responsible for the choice you make.
Today I want to encourage you, if you have had an encounter with God and may have passed on His plan and initially said, “No, that’s not for me”, there is still hope! Repent and turn back to God and He will graciously get you back on a recalculated course. Maybe you’re a victim of someone else’s rejection of God’s direction. Don’t stay there, God is willing to move you back to your planned course and He will as you listen and follow. Persevere and hang on until the path comes back into view. If you don’t remember ever having this encounter with the Father, ask Him today to show you any place you may not have recognized His call and thank Him for empowering you to accomplish all that is in His heart for you to do.
Today’s scripture reading: Acts 16:6-10
6 Now when they had gone through Phrygia and the region of Galatia, they were forbidden by the Holy Spirit to preach the word in Asia.
7 After they had come to Mysia, they tried to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit did not permit them.
8 So passing by Mysia, they came down to Troas.
9 And a vision appeared to Paul in the night. A man of Macedonia stood and pleaded with him, saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.”
10 Now after he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go to Macedonia, concluding that the Lord had called us to preach the gospel to them.
The Daily Dose 