Has God ever called you to a total about-face in your life — something that turned your life upside down? We find one of these moments for Saul in Acts 9. Saul was zealous in his hatred toward followers of Jesus, so much so that he was on his way to Damascus to persecute His followers. He was feared by Christians, and rightfully so; however, on his journey to Damascus, something happened that changed his life forever — he encountered Christ.

“I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5b).

Has God ever called you to a total about-face in your life — something that turned your life upside down? We find one of these moments for Saul in Acts 9. Saul was zealous in his hatred toward followers of Jesus, so much so that he was on his way to Damascus to persecute His followers. He was feared by Christians, and rightfully so; however, on his journey to Damascus, something happened that changed his life forever — he encountered Christ.

Before his journey to Damascus, Saul was arrogant and self-confident — he knew he was powerful. After he encountered God, he was so blinded by the light that he had to be led by his traveling companions. In his darkness, he waited three days for an answer. Put yourself in his place. Would fear be present in your life? How about loneliness and uncertainty? Finally, Saul came face to face with Ananias, God’s spokesman. Blinded by God’s light, Saul saw a vision of what was going to happen. He experienced his own about-face moment.

Saul experienced a supernatural event that changed his life forever. This was the beginning of a rough journey for Saul — a different kind of journey. Consider Acts 16:9, “I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.”

Saul’s new journey didn’t start out easy. Everyone was skeptical of him — they saw only his past. There were many people who wanted to kill him. Even the disciples were afraid to befriend or believe him. This can also happen when God brings us to our very own about-face moment. The course-correcting changes that follow are hard to handle, leaving many people unprepared and afraid.

God knows all of these things ahead of time. He made Saul strong, enabling him to overcome many obstacles. We learn just like Saul that the proof and the power are in Jesus. Saul, who became the Apostle Paul, experienced times of pain, loneliness and sorrow, but he learned that the proof of salvation is found in Christ alone. Jesus said, “Now get up and go listen to what I am going to tell you” (Acts 9:22). God is in the business of bringing about-face moments and changing lives — all we have to do is listen.