Unexpected opportunities

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.” And this she kept doing for many days. Paul, having become greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And it came out that very hour.

Acts 16:16-18 ESV

As you know, this event led to Paul and Silas being imprisoned. Their story of a supernatural jailbreak and the mini revival that resulted is truly inspiring. Most of us would agree that being beaten and thrown in prison isn’t exactly the best or most attractive plan for church planting, but that’s exactly what happened here.

They were on their way to their usual place of worship when they ran into this poor girl. She was following them and screaming. Apparently, this was a daily occurrence. Out of the blue, on this particular day, it was too much for Paul to take. He turned around and spoke to the demon (not the girl), and it left her right away. What was different about this day compared to all the others? What made Paul put up with it for days, then suddenly get annoyed? The Greek word here means intense annoyance, irritation, or emotional distress caused by a situation or someone else’s actions. Something really got to him!

Maybe Paul was trying to be kind to this poor demented girl, just putting up with the feeble-minded. Maybe he didn’t recognize it as demonic until the Lord revealed it on this day. I believe that God prompted him in some way that this was a demon (notice he spoke to the demon). With that revelation, Paul was infuriated that this child was being tormented and exploited by the traffickers who owned her. He was livid with the devil and his henchmen, not the girl.

Whatever Paul’s thinking, this happened during a regular day of Christian activities. Paul was moved to stop and set the child free by the Holy Spirit. That set off a chain of events that had an impact on the whole region of Macedonia for centuries.

As we go about our normal, Christian activity of gathering as the church, let’s leave ourselves open for God to intrude into our day. Listen for the Spirit on the inside to stir up compassion for people we meet, or even annoyance with the devil who torments them. Going to church is not just a box on our to-do list. God wants us to get together and worship Him in Spirit and in truth. He wants us to open our hearts to the teaching of the Word, and to impact and be impacted by the other precious people we meet along the way. You never know, you might get the chance to change the world today. You won’t want to miss it!