Dr. Julio Ruibal fought drug-trafficking in Colombia on his knees. He organized a prayer meeting in the city of Cali to ask God to intervene against the crime in his city. As Christians filled a stadium for 24 hours, nobody was murdered in the city. The criminals knew how to eliminate competition, but what about divine intervention. They threatened Ruibal for leading people to pray. Ruibal said, “I am immortal until God is finished with me.”
Paul found himself on trial before the same people who crucified his Lord. This could have been very discouraging to the man of God. Right on G. S. T., God’s Standard Time, the Lord appeared to Paul. God didn’t form a committee or send an angel. So what did God say to him? “Be encouraged.” God was not finished with Paul so he had nothing to fear.
A friend of mine is approaching 94 years of age. He told me recently, “I wonder why the Lord is leaving me here.” The fact that we are here means God wants us here. Be encouraged: God’s plan for Paul is his plan for all of us. He wants us to tell the story of what he has done in our lives. Wherever we go we are witnesses of the resurrection. I told Sunday about Paul Borthwick’s friend Peter who graduated with a Master’s degree from Harvard and ended up working the counter at McDonald’s. When Paul offered pity, Peter interrupted him by saying, “God put me here among Muslims, Buddhists, and Hindus. I am doing global missions as I ask, 'Would you like fries with that?'” Be encouraged. You are immortal until God is finished with you here, and then you will live with him forever there.
