Around midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening. Suddenly, there was a massive earthquake, and the prison was shaken to its foundations. All the doors immediately flew open, and the chains of every prisoner fell off! (Acts 16:25-26)

But in my distress I cried out to the Lord;
yes, I prayed to my God for help.
He heard me from his sanctuary;
my cry to him reached his ears.
Then the earth quaked and trembled.
The foundations of the mountains shook…
He opened the heavens and came down. (Psalm 18:6-9)

Does it feel like midnight right now even though its daylight? If it’s the darkest time of your life, Paul and Silas have a strategy that did wonders – signs and wonders – and you might want to give it a try. In the middle of their darkest night, wounded and bruised and facing more punishment and possible death, they prayed and worshipped together in the dark.

Find a friend or simply partner with Jesus and determine that you are not going to stop praising God until this long night is over. Turn on your favorite worship tunes and sing from your gut. Then listen for the rumblings… something earth-shattering is on the way, bringing a rescue plan just for you, bringing light in the darkness, strength for the weary, and hope for the hopeless.

Be patient in the waiting and don’t give up. It might not happen immediately, after all, we can’t expect results without mature and highly developed faith. That takes time, as Paul and Silas knew very well. But step by step, glory to glory we are growing in our capacity to believe for the impossible, and the impossible is becoming more and more possible, more feasible, and more imminent every moment.

Father,

In my distress I will praise and not grumble. I will worship and not whine. I will rejoice and not gripe. For you are my God. Your arm is long enough to reach into my circumstances. Your promises are still true, still available, and still in operation. Lord, I give myself to worship you, as you deserve all praise.

In Jesus’ Name Amen