Acts 10:23 “We have come from Cornelius…. A holy angel told him to ask you to come to his house so that he could hear what you have to say.”
Nudges? Yeah, you know, those little inklings you get to do something. They can be somewhat easy or they can take you way out of your comfort zone. No matter whether they come as quiet urgings or a heart-pounding prod, promptings of the Holy Spirit should never be neglected.
The other day I was walking around our block when I passed a woman in our neighborhood. I knew her daughter had just given birth to a preemie and I stopped to ask how things were going. She described how incredible it was that the baby had made it and was slowly making progress in the NIC unit.
After we parted, I started praying for the family when I got the distinct impression this baby’s life was a miracle and that God was going to use her miraculous birth to do a spiritual work in the mother. This was followed by a second nudge: Tell the grandmother. But, Lord, I hardly know her. She’ll thing I’m crazy. I don’t even know if her daughter knows you….. Ok, Lord. If this is from you, let me see her again before I get to the top of my driveway. Wouldn’t you know, as I turned the corner 15 minutes later, guess who was coming toward me!
I wasn’t even tempted to rationalize my way out of it. My request of if this is you Lord had been answered clearly. So I stopped her again and told her what I’d felt. She didn’t look at me like I was a religious fanatic. I spoke. She listened. Then we went our own ways.
Responding to the nudges of the Lord doesn’t always feel comfortable or easy. They often carry us far from our comfort zones. And flashing lights indicating their future impact are usually absent. I’m glad Cornelius followed the directive to ask the apostle Peter to come to his house. I’m glad Peter was willing to stretch far from his comfort zone to respond. Otherwise, the door to the gospel may not have been opened to Gentiles like you and me today.
Friend, don’t neglect the nudges of the Holy Spirit. You never know the ripples you might set into action.