When I was a kid, my dad had his own business as an electrical contractor. It was a small business which meant he did all of the work. When he needed help, he would grab my brother or me. We weren’t the most willing employees. Most of the time we sat around until he asked us to grab a tool for him. Often we would be screwing around, and he would get mad at us. If God called you to do some work for him are you ready to be used?
Acts 16:16-17
As we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit of divination and brought her owners much gain by fortune-telling. She followed Paul and us, crying out, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation.”
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Paul had a way of attracting controversy. Wherever he went people got upset with him. If you read 2 Corinthians 11, you will see what he suffered at the hands of those people. Today’s passage is no different. He is in Philippi and heading out to the place of prayer. These places are where Christians gathered when there wasn’t a synagogue. They were usually near a river and consisted of a small group of people. You need a certain amount of Jewish men to build a synagogue in a city. Paul was minding his own business, not trying to stir things up. This girl follows them and declares who they are.
Show the Way
Two things are important here: Who they were and what they were doing. They were servants of the Most High God, and they were proclaiming the way of salvation. God uses a demon-possessed girl to tell the whole city of Philippi who could lead them to Jesus. If he could use that, then he can certainly use us. As Christians, we have to understand we are servants of Christ and we are to show the way to salvation.
Are You Ready?
You may be doubting your ability to preach the Gospel. We have to be ready to be used and let God do the rest. Paul and Silas were on their way to a prayer meeting when God decided to use them. You could be on your way to Walmart and God decide to have you bump into an old friend who is down and out. Are you ready and willing? The enemy knows who you are? He is trying to silence you and diminish your witness. Step up and allow the Holy Spirit to work through you.