Acts 8:1-13Saul was one of the witnesses, and he agreed completely with the killing of Stephen.
A great wave of persecution began that day, sweeping over the church in Jerusalem; and all the believers except the apostles were scattered through the regions of Judea and Samaria. 2 (Some devout men came and buried Stephen with great mourning.) 3 But Saul was going everywhere to destroy the church. He went from house to house, dragging out both men and women to throw them into prison.
4 But the believers who were scattered preached the Good News about Jesus wherever they went. 5 Philip, for example, went to the city of Samaria and told the people there about the Messiah. 6 Crowds listened intently to Philip because they were eager to hear his message and see the miraculous signs he did. 7 Many evil spirits were cast out, screaming as they left their victims. And many who had been paralyzed or lame were healed. 8 So there was great joy in that city.
9 A man named Simon had been a sorcerer there for many years, amazing the people of Samaria and claiming to be someone great. 10 Everyone, from the least to the greatest, often spoke of him as “the Great One—the Power of God.” 11 They listened closely to him because for a long time he had astounded them with his magic.
12 But now the people believed Philip’s message of Good News concerning the Kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ. As a result, many men and women were baptized. 13 Then Simon himself believed and was baptized. He began following Philip wherever he went, and he was amazed by the signs and great miracles Philip performed.
Our granddaughter is soon to celebrate a birthday, but we’ll not be able to be there on her special day. So we took over her birthday gift tonight, a necklace and ceramic heart-shaped box to put it and other jewelry into. We were both pleased to see she opened the birthday card first and read it all. That included the Bible passage Diane wrote from Isaiah 43, “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.” And, “You are precious and honored in my sight and I love you.” Then Diane said, “On a good day that’s a good thing. On a bad day, that’s a really good thing.”
Oh so true! When bad things happen, the Good News of God’s love is very precious indeed. On good days we need to remember this as well. For on the good days we can be tempted to despise God’s love, imagining that we can get by without God. I fear that is happening more and more in the United States these days.
On bad days we may be tempted to despair of God’s grace and love. We may wonder whether God really cares about us. Or we may think that God is punishing us for some misdeed and try to figure out not only what we did wrong, but also how we can make up for it. Truth be told, we’ve done many things wrong. And we can never make up for it. We have only God’s goodness and grace to rely upon.
That’s why when things are bad we must remember that the Good News is still good. When bad things happen to us we have a choice. We may turn away from God in anger, despair, shame, and doubt. Or we may move closer to God, seeking the succor of his love, goodness, grace, and salvation.
This is what the early Christians did when the terrible persecution broke out against Jesus’ followers. They not only held to the Good News of Jesus, they preached that Good News wherever they went. They knew that external circumstances don’t change the goodness of God or the truth of his word. External circumstances do not nullify God’s Good News. For the sake of Jesus God forgives our sins, promises us life abundant and eternal, and remains a faithful and good God. He is the rock that is higher than any storm.
Perhaps your life is going well. Praise God and rejoice in the Good News of Jesus. Things in your life may not be going well now. Praise God and rejoice in the Good News of Jesus. Even when the news is bad the Good News of Jesus is still good!
David Bahn - Reflections 
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