“And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them.” –Acts 16:25
During WW II, a lady by the name of Darlene Deibler was doing mission work in Indoneisa when she was captured by the Japanese secret police. This is how she described what happened as she was locked in solitary confinement:
The door closed upon me, and I dropped to my knees, eyes intent upon the keyhole. When I saw the key make a complete revolution, I knew I was on death row, imprisoned to face trial and the sentence of death.
I listened to the footsteps of the guard recede on the concrete walkway. When he was gone beyond hearing, I sank back onto my heels. My face and hands were wet with cold perspiration; never had I known such terror. Suddenly I found I was singing a song that I had learned as a little girl in Sunday school in Boone, Iowa:
Fear not, little flock, whatever your lot;
He enters all rooms, The doors being shut.
He never forsakes, He never is gone,
So count on His presence from darkness ‘til dawn.
So tenderly my Lord wrapped His strong arms of quietness and calm about me. I knew they could lock me in, but they couldn’t lock my wonderful Lord out. Jesus was there in the cell with me.
The same God who gave Paul and Silas peace in the prison gave this dear sister a song in the night. In her most desperate hour she was assured that God was there with her, and that gave her hope. They could lock her in prison, but they couldn’t lock God out!
My dear friend, it might be that you feel as though you are bound in some dark lonely prison today. There appears to be no ray of light and no reason to hope. Although your circumstances are different your fear is just as real. In this terrible time I remind you that her God is your God and what He did for her He can do for you. With God we always have reason to hope.
