In this life, there are times of tremendous joy and ones of heartache, good times and bad; and sometimes the hard seasons last a little longer than we’d like. It can feel as if we’re living at midnight, but we don’t have to stay there. As children of God, we can successfully navigate the dark hours without losing hope.
Read: Acts 16:16-24
Paul and Silas did nothing wrong, yet they found themselves in prison. In fact, they had brought freedom to a woman enslaved. The enemy fights against our freedom because he benefits from our bondage, just as the masters in this story profited from hers. He doesn’t want us to be released. Freedom is a battle because the enemy wants us bound to something other than Jesus Christ. He knows that Jesus is the only One who can free us.
What are you struggling with today? Whether it be addiction, disappointment, frustration with your current season, negative self-talk, the inner-critic, anxiety, guilt, shame, unforgiveness, bitterness, or something else entirely, you can be free. It’s what God wants for all of us. The enemy cannot keep us from finding freedom if we continue to seek God even in the dark times.
Journal: Share something in your life that you are currently struggling with or an area where you need to find freedom.
Read: Acts 16:25-34
Praise changes everything. It was the darkest hour of the night, but they were singing about the dawn they hoped would come. There is no greater evidence of our faith than our praise. It shifts the atmosphere and keeps hope alive.
We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they are good for us—they help us learn to be patient. And patience develops strength of character in us and helps us trust God more each time we use it until finally our hope and faith are strong and steady. Then, when that happens, we are able to hold our heads high no matter what happens and know that all is well, for we know how dearly God loves us, and we feel this warm love everywhere within us because God has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love. —Romans 5:3-5 TLB
We can praise our heavenly Father because we know that He is good even when we don’t understand what He is doing. It shows that we truly believe in Him. Our faith rests in the fact that He loves us and only wants what is best.
Even though Paul and Silas were imprisoned, they worshiped God and lifted His name because their hope was in the person of Jesus and not in the realities they faced. God’s plan reaches far beyond our circumstances. They chose to believe what they knew to be true about Him even though they couldn’t see it, and we can too.
Read: Acts 16:27-30
What a beautiful example of true freedom. Because Paul and Silas chose to praise God even in their darkest days, they were not only physically set free, but they were also able to help their jailer find eternal freedom through the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.
Trials are meant to strengthen our hope, not destroy it. We must recognize when we slip into despair. If we are walking through hard things and find our hope deteriorating, then we are putting our hope in the wrong place. Our response to the outcome often shows where our hope is anchored.
This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. It leads us through the curtain into God’s inner sanctuary. —Hebrews 6:19
In all circumstances of life, we have a hope that doesn’t disappoint. God will always have the final word. Praise takes us from the lowest of valleys to the mountaintops and brings us true freedom.
Maybe you’ve had a plan for your life but have hit a detour. Trials and disappointment may be hindering your way. God brings great promises out of great pain. The detour to your plan could be God enabling you to be a part of someone else’s testimony, as hard as it is to see. Freedom is most beautiful when it’s connected to suffering, and you may be the reason someone finds Jesus today.
God doesn’t just do good things; He is good. Trust in His goodness and praise Him even in the dark days. Anchor your hope in Him.
Activation: This week, face trials with praise, even when you don’t feel like it. When encountering detours, treat them as an opportunity to worship His name. At the end of the week, reflect on each situation and journal about how God worked in you and through your praise.
Prayer: Pray these Scriptures in your time of worship and praise this week.
O Lord, I will honor and praise your name, for you are my God. You do such wonderful things! You planned them long ago, and now you have accomplished them. —Isaiah 25:1
All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us. —2 Corinthians 1:3-4
You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb. Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it. —Psalm 139:13-14
I praise God for what he has promised. I trust in God, so why should I be afraid? What can mere mortals do to me? —Psalm 56:4
“Thank the Lord! Praise his name! Tell the nations what he has done. Let them know how mighty he is! —Isaiah 12:4
I bow before your holy Temple as I worship. I praise your name for your unfailing love and faithfulness; for your promises are backed by all the honor of your name. —Psalm 138:2
All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by his great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation, —1 Peter 1:3
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever. Give thanks to the God of heaven. His faithful love endures forever. —Psalm 136:1, 26
All scripture is from the New Living Translation unless otherwise noted.