Cultivating a Forever Faith: Lessons from Priscilla and Aquila Exemplo

Enduring Daily Pressures

The next reference to Priscilla and Aquila describes their departure from Corinth:

“After this, Paul stayed many days longer and then took leave of the brothers and set sail for Syria, and with him Priscilla and Aquila. At Cenchreae he had cut his hair, for he was under a vow. And they came to Ephesus, and he left them there, but he himself went into the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews.” (Acts 18:18-19)

Paul planted the first church in Corinth. But he did not do so alone. He had the help of others, including Priscilla and Aquila, in whose house he dwelt for a season. Living under the same roof meant that Priscilla and Aquila were mentored by Paul into leadership. They may have started life in Corinth as believers, but by the time Paul moved out of their house, they had learned to be leaders (Acts 18:1-5). 

In his letter to the Corinthian church, Paul mentions Priscilla (whom he sometimes called Prisca) and Aquila, both of whom the Corinthians would have known well:

“The churches of Asia send you greetings. Aquila and Prisca, together with the church in their house, send you hearty greetings in the Lord.” (1 Corinthians 16:19)

According to this verse, Priscilla and Aquila hosted a church in their house. Priscilla and Aquila settled in Ephesus approximately 18 years after the events of Pentecost, but it is likely that house churches would have retained much of the same rhythm as described in Acts 2:42-44: 

“And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common.”

As Leaders of a house church, when their leather work was completed for the day, Priscilla and Aquila couldn’t just bar the front gate and turn on the TV to relax for an hour of two. They would have borne the burden of regular teaching, constant prayer, and the spiritual shepherding of a wild group of Gentiles who were just beginning to understand life in Christ. They would have listened to heartbreaking stories and interceded for the sick. Not to mention making everyone feel welcome, cooking and cleaning and troubleshooting, only to wake up and do it all over again the next day.  

In addition, frequent relocations meant added stress. Every time our intrepid couple hoisted anchor and set sail for a new location, they would have had to start afresh, establishing their leather business, finding new clientele, and stabilizing their finances. Priscilla and Aquila’s life was rife with many stresses. Ordinary stresses like money and new relationships and exhaustion.

I sometimes find the daily grind of life harder to cope with than the major travails. Small pressures that never seem to cease, pressing in, demanding attention and strength and energy when you don’t have any to give. Financial pressures, work pressures, the pressures of caregiving, the pressures that come from being in meaningful relationships—all of these just seem to pile on and become a great force.

Occasionally, I visit a stationery shop that has a working post office attached to it. Around twenty years ago, the postmaster started a small ball made of the sticky leftover paper on the side of stamps. Through the years, the ball has grown, engorged to the size of a cannonball, one tiny sliver at a time. Every tiny piece of sticky paper has glommed on to the next, growing steadily thicker and denser by increments. The last time I was there, the postmaster invited me to lift it. Its density made it incredibly heavy, and I couldn’t hold it for long. Daily pressures are like that, made up of small slivers that add on and eventually grow to the size of a cannonball, impossible to carry.

Unless addressed with regular intentionality, the cannonball of daily stress may result in an array of different responses: anxiety, frustration, discontentment, resentment, a sense of paralysis, depression. Or it may lead to ferocious faith. 

Paul’s formula for the ups and downs of everyday life was simple:

“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:6-7 NLT)

This is the formula to a deeper faith. A formula to intimacy with Jesus, because it asks you to remain in constant conversation with him. It requires you to stay steady in gratitude. When the pressures of life threaten to undo you, press into God. It is a formula Paul must have taught Priscilla and Aquila. Must have modeled for them. How many times, in the midst of a rough day, when strength ebbed and discouragement flowed, did Paul draw Priscilla and Aquila to a place of quiet prayer? Of mindful gratitude?

A life worth living comes with many pressures. And Priscilla and Aquila certainly had their share of them. But those pressures did not overcome them. Did not burn them out. Did not fray their relationship. Did not derail their calling. We know this, because ten years later, they were still going strong, this time in Rome, hosting another church in their home.

It’s likely that the daily pressures of your life are not going to magically disappear. But you can become a Priscilla or an Aquila. The pressures of your daily life do not have to derail or overwhelm you. Although their bite may feel ferocious, you can cultivate a faith that is equally ferocious. A faith that can withstand the weight of stress. A forever faith that will not bend to the weight of the passing stresses of this world.

Prayer

Lord, sometimes I feel like the pressures of my life are too much for me. I feel like I get hit with a cannonball every day. I feel derailed and frayed and burned out. Help me to cling to you, seeking your face in every circumstance. Teach me to grow in your peace instead of stewing in my fears. Jesus, help me cultivate a ferocious faith that can stand up to the ferocious stresses of my world.

Additional Verse and Blessing

“I heard an unknown voice say,
‘Now I will take the load from your shoulders;
I will free your hands from their heavy tasks.’” (Psalm 81:5-6)

As you go about performing your tasks, may God take the heaviness out of them. May you accomplish what was ordained for today, without feeling a load on your shoulders. May God make your heart steady and firm.