The Midnight Hour...

Today Pastor Ben decided to give us a message from Acts 16:22-26.  Let me give you a little background on what's going on here....

Let's backtrack just a little to Acts 16:16. Paul and Silas are heading to church to pray.  On the way there they meet a little slave girl who 'predicts the future' for her owners and makes people pay her plenty of money by doing so.  But Ms. Slave-Girl follows Paul and Silas across town yelling and mocking them, so finally Paul gets fed up and commands the spirit out of her.  The spirit of evil leaves the slave girl, and her owners are FURIOUS that their money-making scheme is over.  So they grab Paul and Silas and start beating them. Soon a crowd joins in and it's an all-out attack on the two men. (16:22)

And so Paul and Silas are thrown into prison.

Now, if you've done any research on these times, you'd know that "prison" during this era was not heated, nor air-conditioned.  There was no private restroom.  No ventilation, no heated meals.  Prison during this era was usually the underbelly of the city, consisting of the spaces between the 'cornerstones' of the buildings.  At the most, three feet wide and deep, not tall enough to stand up in, and certainly no space for two grown men to be comfortable.  Did I mention no restroom?

So in the midst of their injuries, (don't forget they have just been beaten by a mob) and a cold, filthy, cramped and disgusting cell... in the midnight hour, these two fellas decide to do the unthinkable.

They decide to praise God.  (V25).  They sing.  They pray.  And not only do they pray and sing their praises to God, but they make enough racket that the other prisoners have no choice but to listen.

I can imagine they may have been shushed a few times.  I would imagine any prisoner would be somewhat grumpy having been awakened in the middle of the night by exuberant praising.

But what happens next, what happens at the midnight hour, in a place where there just isn't much  worth praising... is unthinkable.

(V26) There is a sudden and violent earthquake.  The walls of the prison are shaking.  The foundation is crumbling.  Will they city fall on their heads?  They don't know.  This is terrifying!

BUT....

(V26)  The doors of the cells burst open, and the prisoners chains come loose.

FREEDOM.

Those who were bound, shackled, imprisoned... FREE.

Do you ever feel bound?  Tied?  Kept? There are so many words to express your situation:  Trapped.  Stagnant.  Imprisoned.  Shackled.  Captured.  Cornered.  Stuck.

Paul and Silas knew something we didn't.  In the midst of our personal crisis, we all need to take advantage of the midnight hour and sing.  In the darkest moments, praise.  Seek the freedom that comes with a heart-felt shout to the Lord.

The foundation will shake, and the shackles will fall away.



Until we meet again, keep on praising...

~ Christine.