Beginning with his dramatic encounter with the risen Christ (Acts 9:1-8), the spiritual journey that transformed Paul of Tarsus from a bitter Jewish Pharisee into Christ’s “Apostle to the Gentiles” was truly unique!
He was thrown from his horse and blinded on the road to Damascus, miraculously healed from blindness, and immediately sought to preach Christ in the synagogues of Damascus (Acts 9:20-21) – and all of that took place in just the first days of his apostleship! In the weeks and months that followed he was rescued from an assassination plot by Jews in Damascus (Acts 9:23-25), feared by the disciples in Jerusalem but befriended by Barnabas (Acts 9:26-28), and then led into the wilderness of Arabia where he experienced further revelation and transformation through the hand of God, before returning to Damascus to minister there for three more years (Galatians 1:17-18).
Finally, after 14 years of gospel ministry in the region of Syria and Asia Minor, Paul received the hand of fellowship from other apostles and church leaders along with their blessing to continue serving as the Apostle to the Gentiles (Galatians 2:1 & 9). Once Paul was called and commissioned to his appointed work, he never lost his heart’s passion as a bondservant of the Lord Jesus Christ (Philippians 1:1).
Chances are that your first encounter with Jesus Christ was somewhat less dramatic than Paul’s, but even so, I hope you will be encouraged through Paul’s story that Jesus Christ also has a specially designed spiritual journey in mind for you! Whatever spiritual gifting and life experience the Lord has for you, I can assure you they are in perfect alignment with the work God is calling you to do for his kingdom!
Whether we’re in the first days of our journey with Jesus or already seasoned bondservants of the Lord, He is faithful to lead us and go with us in each step of this journey. As a unique creation of God, the details of your life journey will also be unique and probably won’t look anything like Paul’s journey. But you can be sure, “that He who has begun a good work in you will be faithful to complete it” (Philippians 1:6). So, like the Apostle Paul, may you be faithful to the wonderful, surprising, and unique calling that God created you to fulfill!
Pastor Dave Korinek