Acts 25:11 “’If, then, I am a wrongdoer and have committed anything worthy of death, I do not refuse to die; but if none of those things is true of which these men accuse me, no one can hand me over to them. I appeal to Caesar.’”

NOW!

This may seem like a strange verse to pick for a devotional thought.  What can you possibly get out of a verse like this?  Paul is sounding defiant and almost obnoxious in the face of Festus.  But I have to point you back to Acts 23:11 for you to understand why I picked this verse.

“But on the night immediately following, the Lord stood at his side and said, ‘Take courage; for as you have solemnly witnessed to My cause at Jerusalem, so you must witness at Rome also.’”

Paul saw an opening as he stood before Festus to carry out the orders of Jesus which had been spoken to him earlier.  He was obviously just waiting for some sign this was about to happen.  He was ready to go to Rome.  Here was his chance.

TEACHING MOMENT

Do you look for opportunities each day to pour a new truth into the lives of your children?  Or are you so busy with the daily schedule that you fly right past the chance?  Do you realize at the end of your long, hard day that you missed it?  May I encourage you today to take the time to pause and pour?

You only have your children for a short while.  I know you don’t see that now, but you will. I wish I could go back and re-parent my son and daughter.  I would definitely do things differently.  But I can’t.  I have two great kids and now three beautiful grandchildren, but I can’t redo any parenting in my kids’ lives.

Don’t miss your chance to change your kid’s life for eternity.  Don’t miss that truth telling moment.  The Lord has told us (my paraphrase), “Take courage; if you missed that opening I gave you yesterday, I will give you another tomorrow. Don’t miss it.’”