[Paul] had his hair cut off . . . because of a vow he had taken. (Acts 18:18)
Spring 2020 featured a new fashion statement: “lockdown hair.” With beauty parlors and barber shops shut down and millions stuck at home due to COVID-19, many of us learned to live with long locks. Our new hairstyles symbolized survival: we’d do whatever we had to in order to get through the trying times of the pandemic.
The apostle Paul let his hair grow out during the trying times he went through while ministering in Corinth. Many of his fellow Jews in that city didn’t accept the gospel. They took him to court (see Acts 18:12–16) and even beat up a Jewish Christian named Sosthenes (see Acts 18:17; 1 Cor. 1:1). Paul reacted to the danger by taking a Nazirite vow (see Num. 6). He grew his hair long as a sign that he’d pledged himself specially to God. When he finished his ministry in Corinth, he had his head shaved to thank God for keeping him safe. His new hairstyle symbolized survival.
We don’t take Nazirite vows nowadays. Still, it’s good to pause to reflect on the tough seasons of life that we’ve come through and thank God for preserving us in body and soul. Sitting in a barber’s chair or under a salon’s hairdryer is as perfect an opportunity as any to do that. Your hair stylist might benefit from hearing you share about it too.
Jerome Van Kuiken is a missionary kid, a pastor’s kid, and dean of the School of Ministry and Christian Thought at Oklahoma Wesleyan University.
Take time to think back and thank God for his protection.
© 2022 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.
