Devotional Reading from the Daily Common Lecionary: Acts 10: 17-33

Text: Now Peter was greatly puzzled about what to make of the vision that he had seen … (48)

What was the vision that puzzled Peter? It was “a trance”, a dream, a vision, an insight that he never before experienced. It called him to eat that which he always believed to be unclean…forbidden. 

In the birth of Jesus God was doing a new thing. In the Resurrection Reality, God was doing a new thing. A new world was being born as the walls that divided people from one another became bridges bringing people together. Jesus was and is that bridge. 

Peter’s “puzzle” did not become clearer until Cornelius appeared. Two seemingly disconnected events came together in the lives of two very dissimilar people. 

It has been said that much of life is “time and chance”, serendipity, luck and a dozen other things. I don’t know what it is. My brain and my imagination are too small to even begin to explain let alone comprehend why and even how things happen. There is always something going on behind the scenes, beyond my understanding. Life is too complex to fully grasp. But I do know this; the longer I live and the more I experience, I see the marvelous insight of The Letter to the Romans being played out. “We are confident that God is able to orchestrate everything to work together for something good and beautiful … From the distant past, God’s eternal love reached into the future.” (Romans 8: 28-29, selected The Voice Bible)

Lord, give me the faith to never lose faith in your goodness and love. Give me courage and a willingness to be open to Your leading as Peter was.  Amen.