About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.

Acts 16:25

How’s your day going so far? Is everything turning out the way you expected? I know what I have planned for today, but what happens when things don’t go my way? When someone hands you a lemon are you able to make lemonade?

As a result of simply living out the Gospel and freeing a young woman from spiritual bondage, Paul and Silas were beaten and then placed in jail. They had every right to be discouraged, but as the verse above describes, they were “praying and singing hymns to God.” 

In the face of disappointment and despair, these men chose to turn obstacles into opportunities and other people took notice. First, the prisoners and then the jailer and his family were impacted by the message of the Gospel:

“Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken. And immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone’s bonds were unfastened. When the jailer woke and saw that the prison doors were open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, supposing that the prisoners had escaped. But Paul cried with a loud voice, “Do not harm yourself, for we are all here.” And the jailer called for lights and rushed in, and trembling with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas. Then he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”(Acts 16:26-30).

Some take a look at a glass of water as half-empty or half-full. We all have (or will have) such choices to make, both in our viewpoint and in our actions. There will be lemons in our lives. How will we respond?