May the mumbling commence!
How fast do you wake up? Does your dream life seep into waking life? Do you feel hard pressed to tell the difference between your waking and sleeping life? If you do, you will understand Peter’s jail break experience. Read about it below from Acts chapter twelve:
On the very night that Herod was planning to bring him out, Peter was asleep between two soldiers, chained with double chains, while guards maintained a strict watch in the doorway of the prison. Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared, and light shone in the cell. He tapped Peter on the side and woke him up, saying, "Get up quickly." His chains fell away from his hands and the angel said to him, "Fasten your belt and put on your sandals."
And he did so. Then the angel continued, "Wrap your cloak round you and follow me." So Peter followed him out, not knowing whether what the angel was doing were real – indeed he felt he must be taking part in a vision. So they passed right through the first and second guard-points and came to the iron gate that led out into the city. This opened for them of its own accord, and they went out and had passed along the street when the angel suddenly vanished from Peter's sight.
Then Peter came to himself and said aloud, "Now I know for certain that the Lord has sent his angel to rescue me from the power of Herod and from all that the Jewish people are expecting." As the truth broke upon him he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John surnamed Mark where many were gathered together in prayer.
As he knocked at the door a young maid called Rhoda came to answer it, but on recognizing Peter's voice failed to open the door from sheer joy. Instead she ran inside and reported that Peter was standing on the doorstep. At this they said to her, "You must be mad!"
But she insisted that it was true.
Then they said, "Then it is his angel."
But Peter continued to stand there knocking on the door, and when they opened it and recognized him they were simply amazed. Peter, however, made a gesture to them to stop talking while he explained to them how the Lord had brought him out of prison. Then he said, "Go and tell James and the other brothers what has happened."
After this he left them and went on to another place. (Verses 6-17)
Peter was asleep. I am thinking that Peter was a deep sleeper. The angel tapped him on the shoulder. How many times have you been tapped on the shoulder when you were asleep and had a conversation only to fall back asleep without recalling anything about the conversation? Did we really wake up at all?
I wonder the same thing about Peter in this passage. To Peter it all seemed to be dreamlike or vision-like. He obeyed all the orders given him without question. He saw everything happening that would need to happen for him to escape from such a prison. Surely these things could only come to pass in a dreamland.
Peter stuck with this vision idea until he was safely beyond the prison walls and the angel left him. I bet he looked around a little dazedly wondering how he got where he was. Did what we dream actually happen? It had to be a dream because it was too good to be true.
Then Peter came to his senses. The Lord had rescued him. God had done what Peter thought was impossible even to dream or imagine. God works that way.
Peter’s escape even surprised the people who were holed up praying for Peter. Yes, they prayed for Peter, but they hardly thought that Peter would find a way from Herod’s clutches. Peter had to stand at the door and wait at the locked door.
Do we believe that our prayers will be answered? Do we leave the answers to our prayers knocking at the doors of our lives?
Help us to recognize, O Lord, when you answer our prayers. May the joy saturate our entire beings!
Enough mumbling for now…
Peace Out
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