Acts 7:54-60

Acts 7:54-60
English Standard Version (ESV)

  When the world around is thrashing in chaos, when the waves are crashing down, when the walls are closing in, when the skies have filled with thunderstorms, when it feels as though the very life within you is about to be snatched away, how do we react?  Stephen, on the verge of death, calmly looks into the heavens, casting his eyes upon the one strong enough to save, trusting his heart to the one bigger than death.  Stephen knows his confidence is not misplaced.
  What's your reaction?  Do we share this same cool confidence in Christ, the Lord of life?  Are we certain that we have been plucked from the fate we deserve, to share in the eternal glory of God?  Are we willing to let the storms rage, because we have nothing to fear in the power of God?
  It's hard to capture this, but it gives us a peace that passes all understanding, a peace that comes only in Christ Jesus our Lord.