October 1-2, 2020 was two very long, surreal, momentous, and perhaps two out of the numerous life-changing days of my life. Unknown to me what would happen on October 2nd, the first was filled with lots of emotion, sadness, and a passing of a moment of time. The farms around Blue Mound once thrived to the best of their abilities but due to their rocky conditions, the land was barely sufficient. With the passage of time with subsequent generations parting ways with the older methods of farming or parting from farming altogether, more and more land was acquired for homes for recreation rather than what a farmer sows, he reaps, and passes blessing onto others from that harvest. But when this sale occurred with my grandparents fully selling out to live the remainder of their lives in a nursing home, it was one of the last “old guard” farmers who used to farm with horses, mules, and early tractors. Hard work was no stranger to these people. October 2nd was a day I will never forget. An accumulation of well over six decades (almost seven) of marriage including the acquisition of some things from other farm sales, my grandparents’ lives were out on tables in their front yard and driveway for people to bid, buy, or just walk by without a second look. Although there were a very few family members there who helped with getting things ready, there were a number of community members there to acquire perhaps a special item, a vehicle, or something old to add to their personal collection or resell some place else. During the sale of items, a man arrived who I was very briefly told was the pastor at the nursing home. Having never met him, I initially did not like him (and for no reason at all other than he represented a door slammed shut and a new life for my grandparents’ that I would have liked to had been very different). We made initial small talk and then I looked for an opportunity to avoid him. I did not see him again until he was at my grandmother’s funeral. With deep grief, I was disappointed that this man was there to conduct the service rather than a family member or a minister of the Blue Mound/Dawn community who may have known my grandparents more. He did the best that he could with only knowing my grandmother for less than a week except her knew she did not like being there (she went into the hospital due to Covid a few days after arriving at the nursing home and did not leave the hospital until she passed).
But as time went on, this pastor of the nursing home through his love and compassion for the residents there (and for my case his desire to befriend and involve my grandfather to make his stay at the nursing home better) touched my heart and we became acquaintances. And through this friendship we both were blessed, or I was. I certainly regretted my initial feelings toward him as I very much felt different after. And then after my grandfather passed, he and I sent a number of messages to each other. I value him as a wonderful servant of God who takes his ministry serious for caring for those who have been cast off from family and marginalized to spend their last days in a place out of sight and out of mind…and yet this pastor and staff do their best to make the best for these men and women.
I share this to segue that there are people who exist in our lives for a season and during that time they are a blessing. We may learn from them. We may come to the knowledge and salvation of Christ because of them. We may be strengthened by their dedication to Jesus to obey, even if some of them never are given public ministry or public recognition. Did these people do anything extraordinary? Not necessarily; but when these people became a part of my life, my life was, am, and will never be the same (one of whom I spoke of this morning, Steve Rodriguez, whom I miss and cannot wait to see him in heaven). And there are a number of people in my life who easily fill this roll…and they know who they are. Invaluable people who do not realize they have done much more than were either at the right place at the right time and/or obeyed God when God said to do or go.
There are two individuals who I wish to focus on. Acts 9 speaks of a man who also fulfills this roll. His name is Ananias whose name means The Lord Is Gracious. All we know was that He loved God and listened to God when He spoke a command to find Saul of Tarsus and pray for him. Given this man was not fearful when he was spoken to by God, I can surmise that he knew the voice of God well (would be to God that could be said of us). And despite initial apprehension, he arose and fulfilled God’s command. We are not told of much of anything else about this man other than the testimony Paul shares in Acts 22. Did he preach? We are not told. Did he go on missionary journeys? We are not told. Did he become involved with serving or active in church? We don’t really know beyond what the Word says that he was a devout man who obeyed the law. And perhaps that is to our benefit. We focus on the Saul who becomes Paul who wrote a good portion of the New Testament. He lived a life that testified of the power of a personal God who can guide, forgive, and use anyone who commits their heart faithful to Him. And perhaps for that, that is sufficient enough to know because of a simple man who fulfilled a simple command, someone great for God emerged who may not had emerged the way it happened (albeit it can be argued if someone doesn’t obey that perhaps God would choose someone else who would say yes).
And maybe—although we are not told—this Ananias benefitted from the friendship that began at this moment of prayer, a miracle, and then taking Saul to other brethren who would help Saul in his infant Christian walk. Perhaps Ananias, through an act of obedience, stepped into another realm of faith? Perhaps when Paul passed through Damascus, he stayed with Ananias? Perhaps when Paul arrived in Jerusalem (for Bible conference so to speak), maybe faithful and in the background, Ananias served until called by Paul who introduced him to Timothy and others to say, I owe this man Ananias my life who prayed for me and was a blessing in my life?
The second person (rather group of people) are also in Acts 9 and those are the ones who lowered Saul into a basket through the wall which allowed Saul to escape death. We are not told anything about these people except that they did something that saved Saul’s life.
What is God’s plan? What is God’s purpose for our lives specifically? Maybe for some of us, we are called to do what these people did—help someone escape death and someone who prayed that a man or woman would then eventually be used by Jesus in a powerful and generationally lasting impact. And perhaps maybe “Uncle George” who brought a broken man to church named Wayman Mitchell ought to be nicknamed Ananias?
Could someone be our Ananias? Could we be someone else’s Ananias? Let us pray and keep our hearts open for His voice (and then obey when He commands).