1. Paul (almost) never works alone.
Except for when he is in Athens, we don't see Paul on his own. He always has someone with him. Either Silas or Timothy, or Priscilla and Aquilla... whether we realize it or not, Paul is not a lone ranger off conquering the world for Christ on his own. I think we (ahem, I!) can learn something from that.2. Women are recognized and acknowledged more than I expected - often by name!
"Quite a few prominent women..." "He began to speak to the women..." "A woman named Lydia... a God-fearing woman..." "Quite a few prominent Greek women..." "A woman named Damaris..." "with his wife Priscilla..."There is no shortage of references to the women who were part of the faith communities started on Paul's second missionary journey. The women were important in their cities and in the churches just as they are today. Maybe I was surprised by this because when we think of women and Paul, we (I?) often think of the places where he advises head coverings and for women to be silent in some settings. If we don't realize there's more to Paul's perspective on women, we are missing out.
3. Paul was wrong several times about where he was going, and about who he was going with.
At first, at the end of Acts 15, Paul thought he and Barnabas should go visit the churches they had started to see how they were doing. He was right about it being time for another journey, but he was wrong about traveling with Barnabas. It seems God had other plans for Barnabas and this time Paul ended up traveling with Silas. Then on the way he met Timothy and took him, too. But not to visit the churches he had already started. They headed to new territory. Along the way, Paul thought they would preach in Asia, but the Holy Spirit didn't let them. Then they tried to enter Bythinia, but the Spirit of Jesus wouldn't let them. It wasn't until they got quite a bit further that they received the confirmation they hoped for and ended up on Macedonia. It encourages me to see that even the apostle Paul didn't get all of the instructions in advance. He, too, had to rely on the Holy Spirit to lead and guide and open the right doors and keep closed the wrong ones. I believe when we are seeking guidance from God, He will do the same for us.
By the way, we have some exciting announcements coming soon about Butler women's ministry this fall, so stay tuned! 😉
In the meantime, if you are reading along on our New Testament journey, we'll be reading a bit more in Acts before we read the book of 1 Corinthians, written to the church in Corinth that Paul started during his 1.5 year stay there toward the end of his 2nd missionary journey.
9/16-9/20
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Acts 18:18-19:22;
1 Corinthians 1 & 2 |
9/23-9/27
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1 Corinthians 3-5
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9/30-10/4
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1 Corinthians 6-8
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10/7-10/11
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1 Corinthians 9-11
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10/14-10/18
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1 Corinthians 12-14
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10/21-10/25
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1 Corinthians 15-16;
Acts 19:23-20:1 |
Father God, keep us seeking You and trusting You even when we encounter unexpected road closures and delays or the path we think we are on goes a different way entirely. You are our Shepherd and You are so much better than any GPS could ever be. Help us choose to trust You, to walk together and not alone, and to remember that we as women matter to You. We love you, Lord!
In Jesus' Name, Amen.
