Spend time in prayer and silence with God, asking Him to meet with you and speak to you.
Bible Reading
On their release, Peter and John went back to their own people and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said to them. When they heard this, they raised their voices together in prayer to God. “Sovereign Lord,” they said, “You made the heaven and the earth and the sea, and everything in them. You spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of your servant, our father David: ‘Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the Lord and against His Anointed One.’ Indeed, Herod and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city to conspire against Your holy servant Jesus, whom You anointed. They did what your power and will had decided beforehand should happen. Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak Your Word with great boldness. Stretch out Your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of Your holy servant Jesus.” After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the Word of God boldly.
– Acts 4:23-31
Devotion
Once the leaders realized they could not punish Peter and John for performing such a great miracle in the name of Jesus, they released them. Right away they made their way back to the other apostles and shared with them everything that had happened to them. Immediately, an old-fashioned prayer meeting broke out. As they were praying, the place where they were meeting was shaken. The result of this experience emboldened these new believers to speak the Word of God boldly in the streets of Jerusalem.
The Big Question
Peter and John stood firm despite tremendous pressure and the threat of persecution. How do you stand up against the pressure of our culture to deny Jesus? When God reveals Himself in your everyday life, are you quick to share this with other believers? Do you gather regularly with other believers to pray? What are you talking to God about?
Conclude your time in prayer and silence, reflecting on what God revealed to you today.