Ananias and Saul

Ananias and Saul
Acts 9.11-19a

As the concert progressed, I watched the different players in the orchestra. There at the back sat a man who looked very, very bored. In fact, he disappeared for about half an hour at one point. (There are stories of musicians turning up in bars near the concert hall and ordering a drink while still counting the bars in the music out loud: ‘Ninety-three, two, three, four, Ninety-four, two, three, four, dry white wine please, two, three, four, Ninety-six, two, three, four . . .) When he came back he still looked bored. The music was great, but he seemed to have nothing to do with it. At last we approached the great climax of the symphony. We were nearly at the very end. He got up, took a deep breath, and picked up his pair of cymbals. Nearly there now. Was he going to miss it? Here . . . it . . . comes – and then, in a single great swoop, he gave the one almighty crash that topped off the decisive chord, that lifted it beyond anything that had come before it. The symphony ended; the applause went on and on. The conductor, pointing to different players who had made special contributions, came at last to him. The audience laughed and applauded some more. He had had his moment of glory. I thought of him getting on the bus and going back to a small house in the suburbs. For that one moment, he had been king of the world...

Taken from Acts for Everyone Part 1 by Tom Wright