“You ought to be quiet and do nothing rashly” (Acts 19:36).
It has been well said that hurry is the mother of most mistakes. The wise counsel in our verse didn’t come from the lips of Paul or Peter or one of the other New Testament believers, but from an unnamed official in Ephesus.
Cotton Mather (1663–1728) was the most celebrated of New England’s Puritans (he entered Harvard at age 12 and received his M.A. at 18). When an important decision was to be made, he would often say, “Let us first consult a little with the town clerk of Ephesus.”
And there is nothing like prayer to both quieten our hearts and to keep us from acting rashly. Interestingly, prayer will not only hold us back from unwise haste; it will also spur us on to act instantly in obedience to the things the Lord has made clear we ought to do. Through communion with our all-wise heavenly Father, we find that He can direct us when we “let the peace of God rule [arbitrate] in your hearts” (Col 3:15).