Easter 6
Devotional
Water From the Rock
Lectionary Devotional for Cycle C
Object:
During the night Paul had a vision: there stood a man of Macedonia pleading with him and saying, "Come over to Macedonia and help us."
-- Acts 16:9
There is a mystery to the work of God that continues to challenge our rational minds. This story begins with Paul having a vision of a man pleading with him to come to Macedonia. While the church will often seek to do long-range planning and set goals for itself, we are not particularly inclined to set everything aside and follow a vision. Someone may suggest an inspirational idea, but frequently, it is smothered in questions and pragmatic concerns about possible consequences.
Those who were with Paul became convinced that his vision was a genuine call from God. This followed upon two experiences in which they believed that God was forbidding them to "speak the word" in Asia and in Bithynia. While it is not made clear how they knew this, it is clear that they believed their mission was being directed from beyond themselves. Yet, having come to Philippi, in Macedonia, they did not have any clear direction about what to do next. It is reported that they "remained in this city for some days. On the sabbath day we went outside the gate by the river, where we supposed there was a place of prayer...." If you do not know what to do, then it is time to gather in prayer.
Paul, in contrast to the reputation modern people have of his being anti-woman, found a group of women there and began to speak to them. Even here, the mystery of God continued to work in ways that surprise us. It was not these women, but another woman, Lydia, who God had moved to listen to what Paul was saying. "The Lord opened her heart to listen eagerly to what was said by Paul." She was a merchant who had obviously done quite well in her business, and she brought her household to be baptized and then invited Paul and his companions to take up residence in her house.
Paul came to Philippi, not as a result of carefully laid plans but in response to a vision. When he got there, he did know what to do; so he waited expectantly. When nothing seemed to be developing, he sought a place of prayer. It was God who opened the heart of one who heard him and established the church at Philippi. As a church, we continue to make plans and set goals for our ministry, but it is the mystery of God that determines who happens to overhear us. It is the Spirit of God that directs us. The challenge for us is to learn to trust the Spirit of God when our carefully laid plans are frustrated.
-- Acts 16:9
There is a mystery to the work of God that continues to challenge our rational minds. This story begins with Paul having a vision of a man pleading with him to come to Macedonia. While the church will often seek to do long-range planning and set goals for itself, we are not particularly inclined to set everything aside and follow a vision. Someone may suggest an inspirational idea, but frequently, it is smothered in questions and pragmatic concerns about possible consequences.
Those who were with Paul became convinced that his vision was a genuine call from God. This followed upon two experiences in which they believed that God was forbidding them to "speak the word" in Asia and in Bithynia. While it is not made clear how they knew this, it is clear that they believed their mission was being directed from beyond themselves. Yet, having come to Philippi, in Macedonia, they did not have any clear direction about what to do next. It is reported that they "remained in this city for some days. On the sabbath day we went outside the gate by the river, where we supposed there was a place of prayer...." If you do not know what to do, then it is time to gather in prayer.
Paul, in contrast to the reputation modern people have of his being anti-woman, found a group of women there and began to speak to them. Even here, the mystery of God continued to work in ways that surprise us. It was not these women, but another woman, Lydia, who God had moved to listen to what Paul was saying. "The Lord opened her heart to listen eagerly to what was said by Paul." She was a merchant who had obviously done quite well in her business, and she brought her household to be baptized and then invited Paul and his companions to take up residence in her house.
Paul came to Philippi, not as a result of carefully laid plans but in response to a vision. When he got there, he did know what to do; so he waited expectantly. When nothing seemed to be developing, he sought a place of prayer. It was God who opened the heart of one who heard him and established the church at Philippi. As a church, we continue to make plans and set goals for our ministry, but it is the mystery of God that determines who happens to overhear us. It is the Spirit of God that directs us. The challenge for us is to learn to trust the Spirit of God when our carefully laid plans are frustrated.
