Strategic Placement

The disciples Peter and John faced a sticky situation, where they needed to experience the boldness of Almighty God.   We pick up this story in Acts 4:
26 The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the Lord and against his Anointed One. 27 Indeed Herod and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed. 28 They did what your power and will had decided beforehand should happen.29 Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. 30 Stretch out your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus." 31 After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.

When we encounter a challenge in our lives - and life will bring us challenges - we can recognize that perhaps God is at work, and has strategically placed us in a position where we can be used for His glory.   Maybe it involves speaking God's truth when there is a risk of it being rejected, or maybe you will be called to bring wisdom where it is needed.   Tough challenges call for the bravery of the Holy Spirit, who leads us into the strategic positions where God can use us effectively.

1st Peter 3 can instruct us as we face situations in which God has strategically placed us, but we face fear and resistance, and need His bravery to speak and do what is right:
15 But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, 16 keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. It was a quite unusual occurrence last night, as Cardinal Timothy Dolan gave the closing prayer for the Democratic National Convention.   He is regarded as the highest-ranking Catholic in America, and had also delivered the closing prayer for the Republican gathering.   He had initially offered to say the prayer at the Democratic Convention, but was turned down, then he was invited.

Perhaps most notable was his affirmation of life.  LifeNews.com reported on some of the Cardinal's words:

“Grant us the courage to defend life…waiting to be born, welcomed & protected,” he said, excoriating Democrats to support religious liberty as well in light of the controversial Obama HHS mandate that Catholics and pro-life advocates oppose.  Dolan prays for “life, without which no other rights are secured.”
“God grants us the right to life so we can choose liberty and happiness,” he said, adding that unborn children should “be welcomed and protected.” He referred to the right to life, without which no other right has meaning, saying, “We praise You for the gift of life, grant us the courage to defend it.”

“Renew in all our people a profound respect for religious liberty, the first, most cherished freedom,” he said.

At the Republican convention, he also delivered a pro-life message and prayed for a sense of stewardship for creation and for compassion for the poor.

"May we know the truth of your creation, respecting the laws of nature and nature’s God, and not seek to replace it with idols of our own making.  Give us the good sense not to cast aside the boundaries of righteous living you first inscribed in our hearts even before inscribing them on tablets of stone.  May you mend our every flaw, confirming our soul in self-control, our liberty in law.

We pray for all those who seek honest labor, as we thank you for the spirit of generosity to those in need with which you so richly blessed this nation."

What you have here is someone who walked into 2 very high-profile gatherings and sought to speak the truth, with compassion and clarity.   And, I believe that Cardinal Dolan's activities can serve as an example for us as we recognize and capitalize on opportunities that God may provide us.   You may find yourself in a situation where a majority of the people may disagree with your convictions - in those times, you have to see that God has called you into a situation and then rely on Him to give you the words to speak or the courage to do what needs to be done.   He will place us strategically so that we may be God's messenger, His ambassador, even in a less-than-desirable set circumstances.   But, where God has provided a challenge, He will give us the resources necessary to address that challenge.