Daily Dose of Hope

December 10, 2025

Scripture – Acts 14

Prayer: Almighty God, We come before you today, in the middle of our week, with both humility and gratefulness. You are so powerful, so holy, and so wise. We need you. We seek you. We are desperate to hear a word from you today, Lord. We also know that we have failed over and over again. Lord, forgive us for our sins, for the ways we fall short. In these next few moments of silence, Lord, hear our prayers...Jesus, help us stay focused on you and your Word today. In Your Name, Amen.

Welcome to the Daily Dose of Hope, the devotional and podcast that goes along with the New Hope Church Bible reading plan. Today, we are working through Acts 14.

Today, we read more about Paul and Barnabas' missionary journeys. Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe are all in what is now south-central Turkey, just to provide some geographical context. In Lystra, they were preaching and noticed a man who was disabled since birth, in that he could not walk. The Scripture says that they could tell he had faith to be healed so they healed him. And then basically all heck breaks loose! The locals believe they are gods and want to make sacrifices to them. Talk about getting the wrong idea.

Think about it. In these towns, they worshiped the Greek and/or Roman gods. Their everyday lives were very much intertwined with this kind of god worship. Want a better crop? Pray to this god and give him a few sacrifices. Want to be more fertile? Pray to this god and offer some sacrifices here and there. That was their world. And so it makes sense that when Paul and Barnabas healed, that must mean they are gods. Of course, Paul and Barnabas were appalled at all of this but it won't be the last time something like this occurs. The Gospel was freeing, refreshing, but also a totally new concept for many of these people groups. It takes them time to understand what it means to follow the one true God.

As the chapter closes, we learn that they appoint elders everywhere they go. The church needs leaders. They visit the places they have been before and basically check on them. They commit the leaders to the Lord. It's amazing to me that God raised up leaders so quickly in these young churches. These were baby Christians but God knew exactly what they needed. A church needs structure. A church needs guidance. Without it, it would be easy to have total anarchy. Everyone has a role and a job. That's how the body of Christ is most effective and fruitful. Paul is setting up a model that he knows works well.

What attributes make for a solid, fruitful, effective Christian leader? Who do you know that leads well in the church and who do you know who doesn't lead well. I often say we learn just as much from those who lead poorly as those who lead well. What have you learned from the Christian leaders you have served under?

Blessings,

Pastor Vicki