NOTES for Act 1:1-12

How often does it happen that we, like the "men of Galilee," simply stand and look? We are under an impression: perhaps from a meeting with God, or perhaps with some person, or from something else... Something has struck us to the depth of the soul, and we want to preserve this feeling in ourselves a little longer. As one well-known literary character said, "Stay, moment, you are beautiful!" It appears to us that here, where this meeting happened, here is where we ought to be - because precisely here I can meet God!

But God does not want us to stand in one place, keeping watch for His next appearance. To the disciples "stuck" at the place of His Ascension, the Lord sends angels to explain: He sees them and is waiting in an entirely different place. They need to go farther, they need to fulfill His commission, they need to share what He gives in this encounter, without trying to keep everything for themselves.

In our relationship with God the principle is very true: "When you think you are standing still, you are falling." He wants movement from us - movement toward where He Himself calls us, toward where His Spirit leads us, without regret for the place of encounter left behind, but "with great joy" (see Luke 24:52).