Monday 18 May

Acts 16:11-15; Psalm 149; John 15:26-16:4
Building on what’s already there
Lydia is one of the personalities of the Acts of the Apostles. In a few lines we’re told where she comes from, what she did for a living and (it’s intimated) that she was a match personality-wise for Paul (“she would take no refusal”). In one sense, she’s a passing figure – but in another, she shows us what it means to be a disciple: to be devout, to be open in her heart and to be focused on the needs of others (in this case, Paul and Timothy’s need for accommodation). Being a disciple does not necessarily mean changing who we are – often it means becoming more of who we are: more devout; more open; more outward looking.