Category Archives: Outreach

Click here for Acts 8 audio:

---

Read it. Pray it. Share it. Live it.

Persecution scatters the church from Jerusalem into Judea and Samaria (just like 1:8), and they keep sharing Jesus wherever they go (vv. 1–4). Philip goes to Samaria; God backs the message with healings and freedom from evil spirits, and there’s great joy (vv. 5–8). A famous magician, Simon, believes and is baptized, but then tries to buy the power to give the Spirit. Peter rebukes him and calls him to repent (vv. 9–25).

Next, an angel sends Philip to a desert road where he meets an Ethiopian official reading Isaiah 53 (vv. 26–33). Philip starts “with this Scripture” and tells him the good news about Jesus; the man believes and is baptized, then goes on his way rejoicing (vv. 34–39). Philip is carried to Azotus and continues preaching up the coast to Caesarea (v. 40).

🌀 Reflection:
Ask the Spirit to make you ready and obedient like Philip—willing to leave the crowd for the one (vv. 26–35). Also invite Him to check your motives so they’re not like Simon’s—seeking control instead of a clean heart (vv. 18–23).

💬 Mission Challenge:
Cross a line this week. Share Jesus with one person outside your usual circle (a neighbor from another background, a coworker you rarely talk to). Offer a simple ask: “Could we read one short passage (Isaiah 53/John 3) and talk about it?” Follow up with an invite to pray for a need.

Click here for Acts 7 audio:

---

Read it. Pray it. Share it. Live it.

Stephen answers the high priest by retelling Israel’s story—Abraham, Joseph, and Moses—to show a pattern: God keeps His promises, but God’s people often reject His deliverers the first time (vv. 2–43). He reminds them that God isn’t limited to one place; even before the temple, God met His people and led them (vv. 44–50).

Then Stephen applies it: “You always resist the Holy Spirit,” he says, just as their ancestors did with the prophets—and now with Jesus, the Righteous One (vv. 51–53). Enraged, the council drags him out and stones him. Stephen, full of the Spirit, sees Jesus standing at God’s right hand, prays, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit,” and forgives his killers. A young man named Saul watches the coats (vv. 54–60).

🌀 Reflection:
Ask God to soften any place in you that resists His voice (v. 51). Pray to live with Stephen’s Spirit-filled courage, clear hope in Jesus, and a heart quick to forgive (vv. 55–60).

💬 Mission Challenge:
Reach out to someone you’ve had tension with—send a short message offering prayer and peace, or set up a quick call. If that’s not possible, take 10 minutes to write a encouraging note to a believer under pressure (missionary, pastor, or friend), and pray for the persecuted church this week.

Click here for Acts 6 audio:

---

Read it. Pray it. Share it. Live it.

As the church grew, Greek-speaking widows were being overlooked in the daily help (v. 1). The apostles asked the church to choose seven men of good reputation, full of the Spirit and wisdom to lead this care so they could keep focusing on prayer and the Word (vv. 2–4). The church chose Stephen, Philip, and five others; the apostles prayed and laid hands on them. The result? God’s word spread and many priests believed (vv. 5–7).

Stephen, full of grace and power, did great signs (v. 8). Debaters from several synagogues couldn’t resist the wisdom and the Spirit in his words (v. 10), so they stirred up false charges against him—saying he spoke against Moses, the law, and the temple (vv. 11–14). As Stephen stood before the council, his face looked like an angel’s—God’s peace and presence were on him (v. 15).

🌀 Reflection:
Where is God asking you to serve so others aren’t overlooked (v. 1)? Pray to be full of the Spirit and wisdom (v. 3), faithful in “small” jobs, and steady under pressure like Stephen (vv. 8–10, 15).

💬 Mission Challenge:
Do one act of outreach to someone who’s often missed: bring a meal to a widow/single parent, help an immigrant neighbor with a task, or invite a different-background believer to your table. If your church has a benevolence or widow care team, offer your time this week.

Click here for Acts 5 audio:

---

Read it. Pray it. Share it. Live it.

Ananias and Sapphira lied about their gift, pretending to give all while keeping some back. Peter said they had lied to the Holy Spirit; both fell dead, and great fear came on the whole church (vv. 1–11). God cares about truth and integrity inside His people.

God kept working: many were healed, and crowds honored the apostles (vv. 12–16). The Sadducees arrested them, but an angel opened the doors and told them to keep teaching in the temple (vv. 17–21). Even locked doors could not stop the gospel (vv. 22–26).

Before the council, Peter said, “We must obey God rather than men” and preached Jesus—crucified, raised, and exalted as Savior (vv. 29–32). Gamaliel advised caution (vv. 34–39). The apostles were beaten, yet rejoiced to suffer for Jesus and did not stop teaching—every day, in the temple and from house to house (vv. 40–42).

🌀 Reflection:
Ask: Where am I tempted to pretend (vv. 1–11) or to go quiet about Jesus (vv. 28–31)? Pray for honesty, holy fear, and courage to keep speaking and living the truth.

💬 Mission Challenge:
This week, take one bold step outward: offer to pray for someone who’s hurting, share a short Jesus story, or invite a friend to read Acts 5:29 with you—and pair it with practical help (a meal, a ride, or a small gift).

Click here for Acts 4 audio:

---

Read it. Pray it. Share it. Live it.

After the healing (ch. 3), Peter and John were arrested for preaching Jesus’ resurrection (vv. 1–4). Before the Sanhedrin, Peter—filled with the Holy Spirit—said the man was healed by the name of Jesus Christ, whom they crucified and God raised (vv. 8–10). He called Jesus the rejected cornerstone and declared, “There is salvation in no one else” (vv. 11–12). Though the leaders tried to silence them, the apostles replied, “We can’t stop speaking about what we’ve seen and heard” (vv. 18–20).

Released, the church prayed for boldness, quoting Psalm 2 and trusting God’s plan (vv. 23–28). God shook the place, filled them again with the Spirit, and they kept speaking God’s word with boldness (vv. 29–31). The believers were of one heart and soul, sharing so no one lacked; Barnabas sold a field to help those in need (vv. 32–37).

🌀 Reflection:
Where do you feel pressure to be quiet about Jesus (vv. 18–20)? Ask the Spirit for courage and clarity today, trusting God’s control when opposition comes (vv. 28–31).

💬 Mission Challenge:
Do one bold, loving act this week: share a brief Jesus story or offer prayer to someone who’s open—and pair it with practical help (a meal, a ride, or a gift) so your words and works line up (vv. 32–37).

Click here for Acts 3 audio:

---

Read it. Pray it. Share it. Live it.

One afternoon, Peter and John went to the temple to pray and met a man who had been lame since birth (vv. 1–2). Every day, he sat at the gate asking for money, but Peter told him, “I don’t have silver or gold, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, get up and walk!” (v. 6). Peter helped him up, and immediately the man’s legs were healed. He began walking, leaping, and praising God as the people watched in amazement (vv. 7–10).

Seeing the crowd gather, Peter used the miracle to point everyone to Jesus. He explained that the man was healed not by their own power, but through faith in Jesus’ name (v. 16). Peter reminded them that they had rejected and killed the Author of life, but God raised Him from the dead (vv. 14–15). He urged them to repent and turn to God, so their sins could be forgiven and times of spiritual refreshing could come from the Lord (vv. 19–20). Peter showed how the prophets, including Moses and Abraham, had foretold these days and that God’s promise of blessing through Jesus was meant for all nations (vv. 22–26).

🌀 Reflection:
Where do you need to trust the power of Jesus’ name instead of your own strength? (vv. 6, 16). Ask God to remind you that true change—whether healing, forgiveness, or courage—comes through faith in Him alone.

💬 Mission Challenge:
Like Peter and John, take time this week for the one person God puts in your path (v. 7). Listen to their need, pray for them, and point them to Jesus. You never know how one act of care might open a door for someone to know Christ.

Click here for Acts 2 audio:

---

Read it. Pray it. Share it. Live it.

When the day of Pentecost came, the believers were all together praying. Suddenly, a sound like a strong wind filled the room, and what looked like tongues of fire rested on each person. The Holy Spirit filled them, and they began to speak in other languages so that people from many nations could hear about the mighty works of God (vv. 1–11). Some were amazed, but others made fun of them (vv. 12–13). Then Peter stood up and explained that this was what the prophet Joel had promised—God was pouring out His Spirit on His people in the last days (vv. 16–21). He told the crowd that Jesus, whom they had crucified, was the One God raised from the dead and made both Lord and Christ (vv. 22–36).

The people were heartbroken and asked what they should do. Peter told them, “Repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (vv. 37–38). That day, about 3,000 people believed and were baptized (v. 41). The new believers learned from the apostles, spent time together, shared meals, and prayed (v. 42). God worked through them with many signs and wonders, and the church became a joyful, generous, and worshipful community. Each day, the Lord added more people who were being saved (vv. 43–47).

🌀 Reflection:
Where do you need the Holy Spirit’s help today? Ask God to fill you with His power so you can share His love and live with joy like the early believers did (vv. 4, 42–47).

💬 Mission Challenge:
Think of someone in your life who doesn’t know Jesus. Pray for them by name and look for a way to tell them what God has done for you (v. 11). Maybe share a verse, invite them to church, or simply tell them how Jesus has changed your life.

Click here for Acts 1 audio:

---

Read it. Pray it. Share it. Live it.

Luke’s “second volume” opens by tying back to “all that Jesus began to do and teach” and showing that the risen Lord continues His work through His people (vv. 1–3). Jesus commands the disciples to stay in Jerusalem and wait for the Father’s promise—the baptism with the Holy Spirit (vv. 4–5). Still thinking in national terms, they ask about restoring the kingdom to Israel, but Jesus redirects them: the timing is the Father’s, their task is witness—empowered by the Spirit—to Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, and the end of the earth (vv. 6–8). He then ascends and is taken up in a cloud of God’s presence, with angels assuring that He will return in the same way (vv. 9–11).

Back in Jerusalem, about 120 believers gather in the upper room and devote themselves to unified, persevering prayer—along with the women, Mary the mother of Jesus, and His brothers (vv. 12–14). Peter stands and anchors the community’s next step in Scripture: Judas’s fall fulfilled what the Holy Spirit spoke “by the mouth of David,” and another must take his office (Ps 69:25; 109:8; vv. 15–20). The replacement must be an eyewitness from John’s baptism to the ascension—“a witness to His resurrection.” After praying for the Lord’s choice, they cast lots, and Matthias is numbered with the eleven (vv. 21–26).

Acts 1 shows the church waiting on God’s promise, grounded in Jesus’ mission and Scripture, praying together, and preparing for Spirit-empowered witness (vv. 4–8, 14, 16, 24–26). What Jesus began, He now continues—by His Spirit, through His people—until He comes again (vv. 1–3, 9–11).

🌀 Reflection:
Where are you still asking “when” about God’s plans (v. 7) instead of embracing what He’s already made clear—pray, wait on the Spirit, and witness (vv. 4–5, 8, 14)? Ask the Lord to align your expectations with His mission and to make you a steady, Scripture-guided witness today (vv. 16, 21–22).

💬 Mission Challenge:
Map your “Jerusalem.” Identify one person in your immediate circle (home, class, team, or workplace) and—after praying for them by name (v. 14)—share a simple witness this week: a gospel conversation, an invitation to read John’s Gospel together, or an invite to church or community group (v. 8).