To serve God’s purpose in our own generation.

S:	Acts 13 2 While they were serving the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” 3 Then, after they had fasted and prayed and placed their hands on them, they sent them off. ... 9 But Saul (also known as Paul), filled with the Holy Spirit, stared straight[ah] at him 10 and said, “You who are full of all deceit and all wrongdoing, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness—will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord? 11 Now look, the hand of the Lord is against you, and you will be blind, unable to see the sun for a time!” Immediately mistiness and darkness came over him, and he went around seeking people to lead him by the hand. ... 22 After removing him, God[ raised up David their king. He testified about him: ‘I have found David the son of Jesse to be a man after my heart, who will accomplish everything I want him to do. ... 36 For David, after he had served God’s purpose in his own generation, died, was buried with his ancestors, and experienced decay, 37 but the one whom God raised up did not experience decay.
O:	God, through the Holy Spirit, was the one who directed them to send Barnabas and Saul off on their first missionary journey. The Lord blinded Elymas bar Jesus when he opposed Barnabas and Saul sharing the Gospel with Sergius Paulus. As a result, Sergius Paulus became a Christian, and from this point onwards, Saul is known as Paul.  I suspect this indicates that Sergius Paulus adopted Saul as a result of this. Adult adoptions were common in that culture, as we saw in Ben Hur, and this practice is also well-documented in the historical record. However, the biblical account is silent on whether this happened here or not. So, it could also be that Saul already had the Roman name Paul before this (as he was born a Roman citizen) but he chose to use it more from this point onwards because he was now mainly reaching out to non-Jews. Different biblical scholars have different interpretations. In any case, this event again illustrates how God is more powerful than evil spirits or magic. As Paul preached to the Psidians, he noted that David died after he had served God’s purpose in his own generation. That’s what Paul and Barnabas did as well, and what we should all aspire to do – to serve God’s purpose in our generation. David, in spite of his many mess-ups, was called a man after God’s own heart, because. Let us not be discouraged that we mess up. We must repent when we do, and get back up and keep following the Lord.
A:	Let us serve the purpose of God in our generation!
P:	I Want To Serve The Purpose Of God In My Generation I Want To Serve The Purpose Of God While I Am Alive I Want To Give My Life For Something That Will Last Forever Oh, I Delight, I Delight To Do Your Will What Is On Your Heart? Show Me What To Do Let Me Know Your Will And I Will Follow You   I admit that the above is an aspirational prayer. I know that I mess up so many times when I know your will and yet I did’t do it. But I want to do it. Forgive me when I fail, and I repent and get back up and follow you again. In Jesus’ name, amen.