***
To me, singing is like whistling; you can only do it when you’re happy.
Why, then, are Paul and Silas singing in our first reading?
Hours ago, they were publically humiliated, stripped and beaten with rods. Now it’s midnight, they’re in the belly of a prison and their feet are chained to a stake.
By most standards, that’s a pretty dire situation, and yet there they are, “singing songs to God as the prisoners listened.”
***
They will not waste a moment.
Knowledge of Christ’s resurrection has been firmly planted in their hearts. And they know that when their own journeys are complete they, too, will rise from the dead.
In the meantime, Christ gives them the strength they need to do his will – and to do it joyfully.
***
Though we likely won’t find ourselves in chains this day, we may encounter people who feel imprisoned by insecurity, loneliness, grief or addiction.
Like Paul and Silas, perhaps we can put a smile on their face and give them a reason to hope.
But like singing and whistling, spreading the Gospel can only be done with joy.