Then some Jews came from Antioch and Iconium and won the crowd over. They stoned Paul and dragged him outside the city, thinking he was dead. But after the disciples had gathered around him, he got up and went back into the city. The next day he and Barnabas left for Derbe.
Acts 14:19-20

“‘Lord,’ I replied, ‘these people know that I went from one synagogue to another to imprison and beat those who believe in you. And when the blood of your martyr[a] Stephen was shed, I stood there giving my approval and guarding the clothes of those who were killing him.’
Acts 22:19-20

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I didn’t consider myself the most likely person to get a book published. I didn’t have any formal writing training or connections in the publishing industry. I knew nothing about publishing a book or what it took to get a manuscript out into the world.

My first writer’s conference opened my eyes to how much I did not know about publishing. The journey wasn’t easy, but God helped me plod along, one step at a time. I’d fail and then get up and keep going. Eight years later, I held a published book in my hand. It truly seemed like a miracle.

Paul, originally known as Saul, experienced his own miracle. Initially, Paul hated Christians. He stood by approving of the stoning of Stephen, a deacon of the Christian faith. Not only did he approve, but the original Greek uses the word suneudokeó, which means he was pleased with the killing. He delighted in it. He didn’t seem like your first pick to lead the Christian church.

But Jesus chose him nonetheless.

After his conversion, Paul walked the earth sharing about Jesus. The people were amazed that this unlikely persecutor of Christians could become a leader of the Christian faith. God had done the impossible. He’d changed a man’s stone-cold heart to one that loved God enough to suffer for him.

Ironically, several years later, Paul found himself in a similar situation to Stephen, but this time he was the one being persecuted. An angry crowd nearly stoned him to death, but he got up and continued spreading the news of Jesus. On his last missionary journey, Paul knew he could die for the faith but accepted the possibility and kept going until he was martyred.

Paul’s story is truly a miracle. The same God who performed a miracle in Paul’s life is alive today. He is still working, taking the impossible to the possible, working in places that seem dark and hopeless. That same God is accessible to us today, and while we don’t always understand how He answers our prayers, we know He is listening and working. We know He is capable of anything, even the unimaginable.

Next Steps

Where do you need a miracle in your life? Spend time in prayer, talking to God about it. He hears you. The outcome may not be what you expect, but He is listening and He is capable.