SPEAKER_00: Today, as we focus our minds on Christ, I want to turn our attention to a story felt in Acts 16.
SPEAKER_00: Paul and Silas had been preaching the gospel and bringing the good news of Jesus to people, just like God directed them to.
SPEAKER_00: In the middle of doing what God asked them to do, they were unfairly arrested and imprisoned.
SPEAKER_00: This is their response as they sit in the dark, misunderstood, and falsely accused.
SPEAKER_00: About midnight, Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and other prisoners were listening to them.
SPEAKER_00: That's in Acts 16, 25.
SPEAKER_00: Paul and Silas praised God from a prison cell.
SPEAKER_00: Their chains didn't silence their song.
SPEAKER_00: In fact, it became the very thing that set them and others free.
SPEAKER_00: After this, an angel comes and breaks them out.
SPEAKER_00: And everyone in the prison, including the prison warden, believes in Jesus.
SPEAKER_00: Praise shifts atmospheres, even in the darkest places.
SPEAKER_00: Today, as we approach the throne of God through prayer, let's begin by thanking God right now that He is with you.
SPEAKER_00: Ask the Lord to turn your frustration or fear into worship.
SPEAKER_00: Invite Him to remind you that your song can unlock freedom, not just for you, but for others who hear it.
SPEAKER_00: Imagine your praises rising above your circumstances like cutting through the dark.
SPEAKER_00: Focus your attention on him for ten seconds in quiet.
SPEAKER_00: Do you know someone who might feel trapped in fear, in grief, in uncertainty?
SPEAKER_00: Ask that God would give them a song to sing in the night season.
SPEAKER_00: If you don't know anyone personally, spend the next 30 seconds praying over our church community for those who are in a dark season, but no one might know that.
SPEAKER_00: Finish this time of prayer with thanksgiving to God.
SPEAKER_00: When you're ready, close with Amen.