Imagine you have been beaten and imprisoned for telling others around you about Jesus. What would you be doing while sitting in your prison cell? I have to admit, I would be tempted to give in to discontentment. In my discontentment, I might feel discouraged, disappointed, and even angry at my circumstances. This is not what Paul did, however. Paul found contentment even in the middle of a prison cell. In fact, in the middle of the prison cell, he and his fellow missionary Silas fought against discontentment with praise.
We find Paul and fellow missionary Silas in prison in Acts 16. They had been preaching, teaching, and casting demons out of people in the name of Jesus and were imprisoned for doing these things. Scripture reveals that “the jailer put them into the inner dungeon and clamped their feet in the stocks” (verse 24). Unlike most of us would expect, these two men did not give in to discontentment. Instead of living in discontentment, they chose to praise God. In fact, that night, “they were praying and singing hymns to God” (verse 25). What a remarkable response from Paul and Silas! In the midst of what many of us would categorize as despair, Paul and Silas praised God. I believe that this praise helped them to remain content in their circumstance. In a miraculous act, God sent an earthquake while Paul and Silas were in prison, which ultimately led to the rescue of Paul and Silas and the salvation of the jailer and his whole family.
Paul and Silas did not wait for God to rescue them from prison to praise Him. They praised Him in the middle of their more-than-challenging circumstances. In fact, if God had not rescued them, I am confident that they would have continued praising Him. They understood that their circumstances did not determine their contentment. They could be content even after being beaten and thrown in jail because they were content in Christ regardless of their circumstances.
What an example that Paul and Silas set for us. They praised God in the middle of a prison cell, undoubtedly one of their most challenging circumstances. Like Paul and Silas, our contentment is not determined by our circumstances. When we understand this, we can praise God regardless of our circumstances.
Follow Paul and Silas’s example, regardless of your current circumstance, today and praise God. Play your favorite worship song and sing loudly. As you sing, praise God for everything that He has done for you and for His goodness, remembering that He is in control over everything.
16 One day as we were going down to the place of prayer, we met a slave girl who had a spirit that enabled her to tell the future. She earned a lot of money for her masters by telling fortunes. 17 She followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, “These men are servants of the Most High God, and they have come to tell you how to be saved.”
18 This went on day after day until Paul got so exasperated that he turned and said to the demon within her, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And instantly it left her.
19 Her masters’ hopes of wealth were now shattered, so they grabbed Paul and Silas and dragged them before the authorities at the marketplace. 20 “The whole city is in an uproar because of these Jews!” they shouted to the city officials. 21 “They are teaching customs that are illegal for us Romans to practice.”
22 A mob quickly formed against Paul and Silas, and the city officials ordered them stripped and beaten with wooden rods. 23 They were severely beaten, and then they were thrown into prison. The jailer was ordered to make sure they didn’t escape. 24 So the jailer put them into the inner dungeon and clamped their feet in the stocks.
25 Around midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening. 26 Suddenly, there was a massive earthquake, and the prison was shaken to its foundations. All the doors immediately flew open, and the chains of every prisoner fell off! 27 The jailer woke up to see the prison doors wide open. He assumed the prisoners had escaped, so he drew his sword to kill himself. 28 But Paul shouted to him, “Stop! Don’t kill yourself! We are all here!”
29 The jailer called for lights and ran to the dungeon and fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. 30 Then he brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”
31 They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, along with everyone in your household.” 32 And they shared the word of the Lord with him and with all who lived in his household. 33 Even at that hour of the night, the jailer cared for them and washed their wounds. Then he and everyone in his household were immediately baptized. 34 He brought them into his house and set a meal before them, and he and his entire household rejoiced because they all believed in God.
35 The next morning the city officials sent the police to tell the jailer, “Let those men go!” 36 So the jailer told Paul, “The city officials have said you and Silas are free to leave. Go in peace.”
37 But Paul replied, “They have publicly beaten us without a trial and put us in prison—and we are Roman citizens. So now they want us to leave secretly? Certainly not! Let them come themselves to release us!”
38 When the police reported this, the city officials were alarmed to learn that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens. 39 So they came to the jail and apologized to them. Then they brought them out and begged them to leave the city. 40 When Paul and Silas left the prison, they returned to the home of Lydia. There they met with the believers and encouraged them once more. Then they left town.
