Ultimate Security: Finding a Refuge in Difficult Times by Derek Prince Read Free Book Online Page A

the life of the apostle Paul. He had a marvelous revelation of Jesus on the Damascus road, after which he went into Damascus and remained for three days without being able to see. When Paul had spent three days in blindness, taking neither food nor drink, God sent another disciple, Ananias, to pray for Paul so that he might receive his sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit. When Ananias encountered Paul, he said to him,
    The God of our fathers has chosen you that you should know His will, and see the Just One [Jesus], and hear the voice of His mouth. For you will be His witness to all men of what you have seen and heard. (Acts 22:14–15 nkjv)
    Paul did not become an apostle because he chose that calling for himself. In fact, had the decision been left to Paul, he never would have chosen it. Left to himself, becoming an apostle would have been the furthest idea from his thinking. Additionally, no one in the early church would ever have chosen Paul to be an apostle. He would have been at the bottom of the list. But God made the choice. “The God of our fathers,” Ananias said, “has chosen you that you should know His will, and see the Just One, and hear the voice of His mouth. For you will be His witness to all men….”
    Confidence in God’s Choice
    When God makes the choice, such as He did in the above examples from the New Testament, a certain confidence is released. Ananias did not say to Paul, “God wants you to be His witness,” but rather, “You will be His witness.” Why would Paul be God’s witness? Because God had chosen him. If we would have that attitude in our lives, it would release tremendous confidence in us. If we would find out what God has chosen us to be, instead of trying to be something on our own, then we would have a quiet confidence in our hearts and minds. We would know that the Lord will empower us to be whatever He has chosen us to be.
    Again, we need to emphasize that God’s choice is based on His foreknowledge. And foreknowledge simply means “knowing in advance.” The life of Abraham is a very clear example of God’s foreknowledge. The Lord said the following about Abraham:
    Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing, since Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? For I have known him , in order that he may command his children and his household after him, that they may keep the way of the Lord, to do righteousness and justice, that the Lord may bring to Abraham what He has spoken to him. (Genesis 18:17–19 nkjv)
    God chose Abraham because He had known him. He knew Abraham was a man in whom He could fulfill His will—a man who would do all He wanted him to accomplish.
    It is so comforting and so important to understand that God’s choice in our lives is based upon His knowledge of us. Please, never allow yourself to hold an attitude that says, “Well, God has chosen me to do something, but I can’t do it.” God knows you can accomplish His will. If He didn’t believe you could do it, He wouldn’t have chosen you. He chose you on the basis of His knowledge of you.
    It is very interesting that the New American Standard Bible translates Genesis 18:19 not as “ I have known him ” but “I have chosen him.” Those are two ways of translating the same Hebrew word. Without going into all the reasons why it could be translated either way, the main point it brings out is that God’s knowledge leads to His choice.
    Let God Choose
    You and I need to apply the reality of God’s choice to our own lives. Here is a beginning piece of advice: Never try to be something God has not chosen you to be. Do not make your own plan—and do not depend upon the best you can do—because that is not sufficient. Find out what God has chosen you to be. It may be very different from what you have anticipated or planned for yourself. But when you discover what God’s choice is, then you can know for certain that it is based