"Meanwhile, Peter continued knocking. When they finally opened the door and saw him, they were amazed." Acts 12:16
Think back to a moment in your life when God answered a prayer that you had prayed. Maybe you were praying for someone to come to know Christ, that a broken relationship would be restored, or something else. What was your response? Were you shocked, amazed, thankful, thrilled, or all of the above? The early church must have felt all of these things and more when they discovered that God had heard and responded to their prayers in a very specific, unexpected way.
As we have seen in our study of Acts 12 this week, when persecution against the early church increased and Peter was imprisoned, the church prayed “very earnestly” (verse 5). As they prayed unbeknownst to them, an angel rescued Peter from prison the very night before his trial was to take place. When he realized that he had been rescued, Peter went to a home where many Christ-followers were gathered praying and knocked on the door. When the servant girl of the home went to answer the door, she heard Peter’s voice and was so excited she forgot to answer the door and ran to tell the rest of the people in the house that Peter was at the door. They did not believe her and said to her “You are out of your mind!” (verse 15). Meanwhile, Peter continued to knock. “When they finally opened the door and saw him, they were amazed” (verse 16). They could not believe that God had freed Peter from prison and that he was standing right in front of them. God had heard and responded to their prayers.
Friends, when we pray, God hears us, and He responds. We are not just praying to anyone or anything. We are praying to the God of the universe who is all-powerful. When we pray, He moves. Now, He may respond differently than we ask, but when He does, it is always better than what we could have asked for. Will you trust Him today?
God is moving and working and answering prayers all around us, even when we do not realize it. If we are not careful, we may miss all of the ways He is working. Take some time now to remember how God has worked and moved in your life and answered prayers. Set an alarm for two minutes. For the next two minutes, list different ways God has answered prayers throughout your life. When the alarm goes off, stop and thank God for the ways He has worked and moved in your life and answered prayers.
Acts 12:12-16 (NLT)
"When he realized this, he went to the home of Mary, the mother of John Mark, where many were gathered for prayer. 13 He knocked at the door in the gate, and a servant girl named Rhoda came to open it. 14 When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed that, instead of opening the door, she ran back inside and told everyone, “Peter is standing at the door!”
15 “You’re out of your mind!” they said. When she insisted, they decided, “It must be his angel.”
16 Meanwhile, Peter continued knocking. When they finally opened the door and saw him, they were amazed."
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