Good Morning, You are cordially invited to join me for a daily scripture break. Acts 18:9-11: "One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision: “Do not be afraid; keep on speaking, do not be silent. For I am with you, and no one is going to attack and harm you, because I have many people in this city.” So Paul stayed in Corinth for a year and a half, teaching them the word of God.” Last week, a few people asked, how do I identify my holy calling?  Some people just know from an early age. Sometimes, it takes time to evolve into your holy vocation.  We can get ahead of the Holy Spirit with the best intentions but veer off course until the Holy Spirit reroutes our path with a few course corrections so we are aligned perfectly with the God’s Will/Intent.  God decides what our mission is, gifts us with the talents/skills to accomplish our assignment, and watches over us while we obediently fulfill our assignment.  Some may recoil at that statement because this may sound like you have no say, no control over your life.  Just consider this: there is no other circumstance or situation where you will be happier than God’s perfect Will.  We have to remember, God created us with His Will /Intent in mind. The Apostle Paul thought he understood his holy calling; he would teach his “people" (i.e., the Jewish community)  the Good News. (Sounds good, right?) Let’s briefly review the beginnings of Paul’s Apostolic mission. In chapter 17 of the book of Acts, it recounts how Paul’s mission to the Gentiles evolved. Paul initially evangelized the Jewish communities in Thessalonica, Berea, and Athens.  There were some in these communities who believed his teachings but the synagogue leadership in these cities rejected him and ran him off.  Paul went to Corinth and resided with Aquila and Priscilla; they were also tentmakers like Paul.  Paul worked with them to earn a living and he attempted to preach to the Jewish community.   Timothy and Silas joined Paul in Corinth. This Jewish community also became malicious towards Paul and he was outraged. In Acts 18:6, Paul said,”Your blood be on your own heads. I am innocent of it. From now on I will go to the Gentiles.” To recap, Paul followed his vision of his calling until he was fed up because circumstances weren’t  going as he envisioned.  Then when Paul took a step towards the Lord’s Will for him to become the Apostle of the Gentiles; the Lord gave Paul a vision, a confirmation. Please take a moment to review each of these foundational scriptures below that support today's passage, Acts 18:9-11. The key directives of this passage are: 1. “Do not be afraid” - (References. Joshua 1:9, Isaiah 43:1, II Timothy 1:7, Hebrews 13:6, Matthew 10:31, Psalm 23:4, Isaiah 41:10) 2. “Keep on speaking” - (References. Ephesians 4:1, II Peter 1:10, I Corinthians 7:17, Philippians 3:14, Mark 16:15, II Timothy 1:10) 3. "Do not be silent” - (References. Acts 4:20, Ephesians 5:11, Matthew 10:32, Ecclesiastes 3:7-8, and Ezekiel 3:18-19) 4. “The Lord is with you” - (References. Deuteronomy 31:6/31:8, Hebrews 13:5, Joshua 1:5, Psalm 94:14, Matthew 28:20, Isaiah 41;10-13, I Kings 8:57) 5. “No one is going to attack and harm you” -  (References. Romans 8:28, Psalm 121:7, Psalm 32:7, Isaiah 54:17, Psalm 17:8-10, II Thessalonians 3:3-5) This jumped off the page at me.  When we finally align ourselves with our holy calling, our holy vocation this is what we can expect. God reassures Paul; God is right there with Paul and confirms Paul is on the right track. (Acts 18:9-11) I alluded earlier in the text to the deadly trap of doing "what we think we should" instead of listening for instruction to lead us to our holy calling.  Christians can mindlessly wander into deadly situations listening to their own reasonings. With Paul's education and religious background on the surface he was a "natural fit" to minister to the Jewish communities he encountered. Yet, he was consistently rejected. Paul admonished the Jewish community who rejected him in Corinth - "Your blood be on your own heads. I am innocent of it. From now on I will go to the Gentiles.” After all of this turmoil, he "stumbled" onto the correct path. The Bible doesn't explicitly say Paul recognized he was on the wrong path but the consistent rejection by those communities was a sign.  It is often out of frustration we finally cease in our own efforts and listen; we finally emerge from our veiled confusion. As faithful members of the Body of Christ, we are called to evangelize the nations but Paul's experience warns us sometimes we must wait for the Holy Spirit (God's perfect timing).  We must be faithful to and rely completely upon the exact instruction of the Holy Spirit.  Some might ask why does it matter I am one person?  Every believer has a calling and it is the Holy Spirit in His perfect timing Who orchestrates what is required. In James 5:20, it says, "remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of their way will save them from death and cover over a multitude of sins.”  We often take action based on our own reasoning when we should listen. We aren’t responsible if the message of salvation is rejected by the sinner, but when the Holy Spirit draws someone to you to be evangelized don’t shirk your holy calling.  The Holy Spirit finally convinced Paul of his target audience, the Gentiles. In a post a few months ago, we examined I Corinthians 3:5-9 which says, " What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe-as the Lord has assigned to each his task.  I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow.  So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.  The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor.  For we are co-workers in God's service; you are God's field, God's building.”  This passage eloquently reveals while we have a holy assignment from God to plant the seeds of salvation; it is God alone Who saves.  We are called to humbly work in Kingdom of God as field workers to harvest lost souls and spread the Good News. However, not everyone is going to accept the message of Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.  In John 15:18-19, it says, "If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated Me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you.”  Accept it now; don’t whine about the world disliking us. Some will hate you for the Word’s sake. But Jesus said, "“I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” Amen.(John 16:33) In this post we talked about locating the proper road to our holy calling and aligning ourselves with God’s Will / Intent.  We discovered if we fail to try and fulfill our calling; we will be judged for disobedience.  We learned that we don’t orchestrate the circumstances or opportunities of evangelization; just be open when the Holy Spirit prompts you to plant the seeds of salvation in a person. And finally, we were warned the world may hate you but Jesus has overcome the world. Listen for the call. Please remember to pray II Chronicles 7:14 for our nation if possible in the morning and evening.  Have a blessed day. Peace and be prepared.