The Lord opened her heart

Now a certain woman named Lydia heard us. She was a seller of purple from the city of Thyatira, who worshipped God. The Lord opened her heart to heed the things spoken by Paul. And when she and her household were baptised  she begged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay.” So she persuaded us. - Acts 16.14-15

I love the story of the Philippian church from the very beginning. When Paul and Silas crossed over the water to Philippi they came across a prayer riverside prayer meeting. There they found a group of people, including a wealthy woman named Lydia. Lydia already worshipped God and was meeting for prayer with a group of people.

Paul, like he always did (and like we should be ready to) shared the gospel with this stranger at the prayer meeting.

When the gospel was shared Lydia paid attention because the Lord opened her heart.

This was the start of the church at Philippi. It is an amazingly interesting church. Paul’s later letter back to the church is full of love and instruction.

But it all started with the Lord opening the heart of one merchant.

In the midst of all the excitement in the early days of the church it is important to note who is at work. Sure, we have examples of some of the most courageous, bold, persistent, and dedicated servants of the Lord that we will ever see. We can look to them as examples of faithfulness and admire their godly service, but we need to remember more than just their service. We need to remember who was actually doing the work.

The Lord opened Lydia’s heart to receive what Paul said.

When it comes to salvation God is the one who is really at work. All we can do is to be obedient, be faithful, and watch Him work.

We can’t get into a comparison of who is the greatest ‘soul-winner’ for it is the Lord alone who wins souls to Himself.

All we have to do is stay at the task and trust the Lord to open hearts.