Acts 16:9-15

9During the night Paul had a vision: there stood a man of Macedonia pleading with him and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” 10When he had seen the vision, we immediately tried to cross over to Macedonia, being convinced that God had called us to proclaim the good news to them. 11We set sail from Troas and took a straight course to Samothrace, the following day to Neapolis, 12and from there to Philippi, which is a leading city of the district[c] of Macedonia and a Roman colony. We remained in this city for some days. 13On the sabbath day we went outside the gate by the river, where we supposed there was a place of prayer; and we sat down and spoke to the women who had gathered there. 14A certain woman named Lydia, a worshiper of God, was listening to us; she was from the city of Thyatira and a dealer in purple cloth. The Lord opened her heart to listen eagerly to what was said by Paul. 15When she and her household were baptized, she urged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come and stay at my home.” And she prevailed upon us.

Throughout the Acts of the Apostles, Paul and his crew are directed where to go in many different ways. Just before this passage, the apostles are “forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia” and “the Spirit of Jesus” does not “allow them” to go into Bithynia (Acts 16:6-7). But in this passage, Paul receives positive direction in two different ways: through a vision of a man and an invitation of a woman. In their mission work, the early followers of Jesus must remain just as open to indirect messages about where they are not to go as they are to specific affirmations of where they are welcome.

• When has it been easier for you to hear warnings about where not to go and what not to do? When has it been easier to hear positive guidance? In what different ways has God offered you direction in your life?
• She urged us, saying, “…come and stay at my home.” What invitation in your life are you having difficulty being open to? Is it from someone you do not expect?