July 29, 2010 - Acts 14:8

"In Lystra there sat a man crippled in his feet, who was lame from birth and had never walked." Acts 14:8.
South of Iconium, where Paul and Barnabas had just been, was the city of Lystra. It was on the road that would take them back to their home in Tarsus. In Lystra, they came upon a man who was sitting in public, most likely begging, who had been crippled from birth and had never walked. The scene is set for an amazing healing to happen at Paul's hands.
Imagine with me some of the possible thoughts going through this man's mind just before Paul came into his view. What are some thoughts that come to your mind? If that had been me, I most likely would have had a hard time looking anyone in the eye, because my self image would have been so poor. I would have worried where my next meal would be coming from. I was always the one who was very needy and could never make it on my own. I depended on others and was very upset – even bitter, when others treated me cruelly or ignored me.
This man struggled greatly, but all of that was about to change. We think that the healing would have definitely been worth the change, yet because of all the new "unknowns" that the healing would bring, he might have been more reluctant. When change happens in our lives, it shakes us up and makes things different from what we are used to. This crippled man was about to have a radical change in his life. I wonder how he adjusted to all the change?
Questions to consider: How do you view change in your life? Has there been anything in your life that has crippled you from moving forward? How did you (or can you) break free from what crippled you?
Prayer: Father, thank You for the example of this crippled man whose life changed radically with his healing. Help me to see those things that cripple me, and that are holding me back from deeper life in You, and help me to be free of them. Amen.