Changing History

Acts 13:1-3

One day as these men were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Appoint Barnabas and Saul for the special work to which I have called them.” (Acts 13:2)

THE MORAVIANS BEGAN A prayer movement in the 1720s that lasted more than a century. Out of their dedication to corporate prayer came some of the first drops of the gushing stream we now know as the modern missions movement. God prompted some of the Moravians to go to the Caribbean islands to minister to slaves, and though the work was difficult and many died, a sense of responsibility for the unevangelized world began to spread within Protestant circles. Over the next two centuries and beyond, many Christians would dedicate their lives sacrificially for all to hear the Good News of the Kingdom.

Things happen when we come to God with no agenda other than worshiping him. That’s what the leaders of the church in Antioch seemed to be doing when Barnabas and Saul were appointed for their work; the literal sense of Acts 13:2 is that they were ministering to the Lord rather than asking him to minister to them. When we focus on worship, we are entering into the environment of heaven, where worship fills the atmosphere all the time. We cannot help being changed in that environment. God’s voice and his purposes become clearer. Divine thoughts begin to flow. The Holy Spirit speaks. And in the case of Saul (also called Paul), Barnabas, the Moravians, and many other people and groups who have encountered God in worship, things change. Plans unfold. World history takes a different turn.

One of the greatest things you can do for this world is to enter into the environment of heaven by worshiping God. It might be tempting to worship him out of self-interest—to prompt answers to prayer, for example— but that isn’t worship. Come to him without any agenda other than loving him and anticipating his goodness. The more you immerse yourself in his praises, the more you will carry the aroma of heaven with you. In his timing, you may hear his voice or sense his purpose. And this world will undoubtedly be the better for it.

{Lord, may my adoration rise to your throne and bless your heart. May my voice join in with the praises of heaven. And may heaven so fill my heart that the course of history—at least my corner of it—changes. Amen.