"We are ALL here"

God showed me something a little while ago that I've wanted to share with the team. It happened while I was doing my Life Journal reading. (Go Life Journal!)

But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was a great earthquake so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone's chains were loosed. And the keeper of the prison, awaking from sleep and seeing the prison doors open, supposing the prisoners had fled, drew his sword and was about to kill himself. But Paul called with a loud voice saying, "Do yourself no harm, for we are all here."

I've heard the story of Paul & Silas many times. The basic point: Paul & Silas praise God and God lets them out of jail, but they don't leave, and as a result, the jailer is saved.

But this time, I noticed that when Paul and Silas were worshipping, it says "the prisoners were listening to them." And then when the jailer went to kill himself because he thought they'd escaped, Paul told him, "Do yourself no harm, for we are all here." This indicates to me that the prisoners were either convicted or saved by the power of Paul and Silas's worship. Otherwise, why would they also stay when the doors were sovereignly opened?

So more than an earthquake that broke the jail--a whole group of prisoners were saved through some songs! Remember this greatness and mercy of our God next time we're up on stage! He can accomplish so much through our worship.