October 18th, 2026
By: Tabitha White
I don’t know about you, but I really do enjoy reading my Bible. I love learning about the faith of people that followed Jesus and their boldness in declaring who He is! I love seeing how God came through in situations that, on the outside, looked dire and impossible..but God! And I love how God speaks through verses that I have read over and over throughout my life, but they jump off the page at the moment that I need them.
This week, I was reading a story at the end of Acts, and one line caught my attention. Acts 24:25 says, “As Paul expounded on righteousness, self-control, and the coming judgment, Felix became frightened and said, “You may go for now. When I find the time, I will call for you.”
Let me set the stage a little…Once again, Paul is standing trial. This time, he is before Felix, who was the governor of Judea. We know that Felix was also “quite familiar with the Way,” since Luke included that in his description of the scene. In several instances, we get to read exactly what Paul said to the leaders he faced, but in this case, we only know that he spoke on “righteousness, self-control, and the coming judgement.”
However, Luke tells us clearly that Felix “became frightened” as Paul spoke. Can I put that into a more common language for all of us? Felix became convicted! He was hearing the truth, and conviction was stirring in his heart.
Have you been there before? I know that I have. The pastor starts preaching, and it feels like he has spent the week walking around in your shoes! Or that the Holy Spirit directly downloaded the sermon to the pastor to make sure that you knew that God was speaking to you! Well, that’s where we find Felix! Listening to Paul and becoming frightened (or convicted).
What happens next is the saddest line in the chapter, Felix said, “You may go for now. When I find the time, I will call for you.” Felix didn’t respond to that conviction in his heart. He sent Paul away saying that he could call for him again “when I find the time.”
“When I find the time…” That’s a pretty common phrase, right?
“When I find the time, I’ll clean out my car (or closet, or purse).”
“When I find the time, I’ll call (or text) my friend that God laid on my heart.”
“When I find the time, I’ll read my Bible (pray, step out like God asked me to do).”
“When I find the time, I will go up to that person face-to-face and share the Gospel!”
“When I find the time…”
Here’s the problem with that: James 4:14 says, “How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog—it’s here a little while, then it’s gone.” How do you know that you have the extra time to find or that the person on the other side of your obedience has that time left too?
I don’t want to sound all gloom and despair, but I do want to be honest…Tomorrow isn’t promised to any of us! That’s a phrase that I have seen, and heard, quite a few times over the last few months.
Tomorrow isn’t promised. It’s a concept that we’ve all heard, but do we live like it is true? If tomorrow isn’t promised, would you place the call or send the text? If tomorrow isn’t promised, would you dive into God’s Word to see what He wants to speak to you each day? If tomorrow isn’t promised, would you share the Gospel and follow the Holy Spirit’s leading - even when it made you uncomfortable?
Let’s get back to our story from Acts 24. We know that Felix sent Paul away when he became convicted, but Luke shares a little more insight. Over the next two years, Felix calls Paul back and has several more conversations with him…but one thing is missing from the story. Did Felix ever surrender his life to Christ? And the answer is that we don’t know. However, we do know that Paul was faithful to share God’s Word throughout those years.
I want to leave you with a recent conversation that I had with a friend who is also a children’s pastor. I was talking to her about how there were several people that I had been praying for to receive salvation and how sometimes it can be discouraging. (You’ve been there too, right?) Then she said something that has stuck with me ever since…”If they are still breathing, there is still hope!”
So today, while we are still here, let’s seize the moments that we have and lean into the leading of the Holy Spirit! Pray, dig into God’s Word, listen to the Holy Spirit, and be bold enough to follow in step when He asks you to move!! Today, find the time!
I don’t know about you, but I really do enjoy reading my Bible. I love learning about the faith of people that followed Jesus and their boldness in declaring who He is! I love seeing how God came through in situations that, on the outside, looked dire and impossible..but God! And I love how God speaks through verses that I have read over and over throughout my life, but they jump off the page at the moment that I need them.
This week, I was reading a story at the end of Acts, and one line caught my attention. Acts 24:25 says, “As Paul expounded on righteousness, self-control, and the coming judgment, Felix became frightened and said, “You may go for now. When I find the time, I will call for you.”
Let me set the stage a little…Once again, Paul is standing trial. This time, he is before Felix, who was the governor of Judea. We know that Felix was also “quite familiar with the Way,” since Luke included that in his description of the scene. In several instances, we get to read exactly what Paul said to the leaders he faced, but in this case, we only know that he spoke on “righteousness, self-control, and the coming judgement.”
However, Luke tells us clearly that Felix “became frightened” as Paul spoke. Can I put that into a more common language for all of us? Felix became convicted! He was hearing the truth, and conviction was stirring in his heart.
Have you been there before? I know that I have. The pastor starts preaching, and it feels like he has spent the week walking around in your shoes! Or that the Holy Spirit directly downloaded the sermon to the pastor to make sure that you knew that God was speaking to you! Well, that’s where we find Felix! Listening to Paul and becoming frightened (or convicted).
What happens next is the saddest line in the chapter, Felix said, “You may go for now. When I find the time, I will call for you.” Felix didn’t respond to that conviction in his heart. He sent Paul away saying that he could call for him again “when I find the time.”
“When I find the time…” That’s a pretty common phrase, right?
“When I find the time, I’ll clean out my car (or closet, or purse).”
“When I find the time, I’ll call (or text) my friend that God laid on my heart.”
“When I find the time, I’ll read my Bible (pray, step out like God asked me to do).”
“When I find the time, I will go up to that person face-to-face and share the Gospel!”
“When I find the time…”
Here’s the problem with that: James 4:14 says, “How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog—it’s here a little while, then it’s gone.” How do you know that you have the extra time to find or that the person on the other side of your obedience has that time left too?
I don’t want to sound all gloom and despair, but I do want to be honest…Tomorrow isn’t promised to any of us! That’s a phrase that I have seen, and heard, quite a few times over the last few months.
Tomorrow isn’t promised. It’s a concept that we’ve all heard, but do we live like it is true? If tomorrow isn’t promised, would you place the call or send the text? If tomorrow isn’t promised, would you dive into God’s Word to see what He wants to speak to you each day? If tomorrow isn’t promised, would you share the Gospel and follow the Holy Spirit’s leading - even when it made you uncomfortable?
Let’s get back to our story from Acts 24. We know that Felix sent Paul away when he became convicted, but Luke shares a little more insight. Over the next two years, Felix calls Paul back and has several more conversations with him…but one thing is missing from the story. Did Felix ever surrender his life to Christ? And the answer is that we don’t know. However, we do know that Paul was faithful to share God’s Word throughout those years.
I want to leave you with a recent conversation that I had with a friend who is also a children’s pastor. I was talking to her about how there were several people that I had been praying for to receive salvation and how sometimes it can be discouraging. (You’ve been there too, right?) Then she said something that has stuck with me ever since…”If they are still breathing, there is still hope!”
So today, while we are still here, let’s seize the moments that we have and lean into the leading of the Holy Spirit! Pray, dig into God’s Word, listen to the Holy Spirit, and be bold enough to follow in step when He asks you to move!! Today, find the time!
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