Tuesday, March 29 – Acts 5:15-16

… to such an extent that they even carried the sick out into the streets and laid them on cots and pallets, so that when Peter came by at least his shadow might fall on any of them. The people from the cities in the vicinity of Jerusalem were coming together as well, bringing people who were sick or tormented with unclean spirits, and they were all being healed.

Sometimes as followers of Jesus, when we hit a pitfall in our faith, have a conflict in our church, or see another Christian fall, we start to wonder, “How do we continue from here?” Word about the deceit of Ananias and Saphira and the dire consequences spread around, and it freaked out a lot of people! When we read these verses following their story, it may be surprising that such amazing miracles and growth in the church followed such a scary event. In Acts, we see a lot of peaks and valleys in the church and moments that may make you wonder, “How could they go on from that?” But regardless of the season, God remains faithful to His people and equips His followers—whether they were facing prison or moving on from a shocking event. God remains true to who He is. He is unchanging and His wonders draw people in. When we begin to feel like the world is against us and opposing our faith, it is important to remind ourselves of moments like these. Even after a moment when people began to truly be afraid of God, He still drew more in. Regardless of how our culture feels about God, He has not changed. He will remain faithful to His followers, equipping them to make disciples and using His Holy Spirit to bring people who are far from Him near. You may not exude the power of Christ in the same way Peter did in this passage, but God is still alive and at work, living inside of you! Every day you walk, live, and breathe, you give a testimony of who He is and how He has made a way to reconcile His people to Himself (Colossians 1:27).

• When have you had a pitfall in your faith? How did God bring you through that time?
• How can you remind yourself of God’s unchanging work in your life and in the world?
• Pray and ask God to remind you of His faithfulness when you begin to doubt.