Acts 16:9-15 "Out There and In Here"

         Because we choose our Scripture readings each week from what is called the Common Lectionary, once again we find ourselves in the midst of the Book of the Acts of the Apostles.  Our reading this morning is the kind of passage that the Deacon for the day generally tries to pass off to someone else to read – mainly because it has all those hard to pronounce names of ancient places – unfamiliar cities and regions in lands that we know next to nothing about. 

         Face it - much of this passage reads like a travelogue because it is a rather detailed account, first, of all the places God told Paul and his sidekick Silas not to go - followed by a recitation of their actual route which eventually landed them in Philippi.

         When we meet Paul today, he is itching to be on the move – intent on spreading the Gospel message to Gentiles all over the ancient world.  However, when the story begins, he is also at a loss about just where to go next because God seems to be putting up roadblocks left and right. 

           “Shall we go into Asia?”

           “No” directed the Holy Spirit. 

           “Then how about Bithynia?”

           “No go” replied the Spirit of Jesus. 

         “OK – God only knows there is not much else around.  Guess we’ll head to Troas,” figured Paul.

         And so they did, which proved to be a wise and God-like choice.  Paul’s GPS provided concrete directions this time instead of only divine static.  And it was in Troas that Paul had yet another vision.  Not Jesus this time, but rather a man from Macedonia standing on the far shore of the Aegean Sea, beckoning and begging him.

         “Who?  Me?” Paul queried.

         “Yes, of course, you!  Come over to Macedonia and help us.”

         Paul, who knew enough to take these visions seriously, and Silas, who knew enough to trust Paul’s judgment when it came to that particular form of divine intervention, both hopped the next boat to Macedonia, which would be in modern day Greece, and so the Gospel made its way into Europe. 

         However, the travelogue is not completed yet.  It continues to chronicle Paul’s route on the other side of the ocean – Samothrace, Neapolis – and onward until he and Silas reach Philippi, a stronghold of Roman power in the area – and a town more familiar to some of us because it was the site of an early Christian worshipping community – to whom a letter was once written – the letter to the Philippians.

         It was also in Philippi that Paul and Silas met Lydia, a woman whose tiny tale is wedged in at the end of this Biblical trip advisor.  We do not know much about Lydia, and Scripture only allots her these couple of verses in the Book of Acts.  However, the few details that we can tease out are enough for us to outline a very intriguing 1^st century woman, one who was strong, smart, independent, and most definitely walked her own path. 

         Lydia was a businesswoman, not the usual occupation for a female in ancient times.  She was a dealer, a trader in purple cloth.  She bargained and negotiated with men who could afford such luxuries for themselves, their wives, their mistresses, or their favorite concubines.  Another way to look at Lydia’s business was that she sold purple, the color of power.  In that sense, Lydia was a power broker, a vendor of power, and she clearly had made her way successfully in a patriarchal world, in a society run by men. Lydia had clout.

         As Baptist pastor Randy Hyde describes her, “Lydia is a savvy, self-sufficient business woman and thus carries herself with confidence. You know the type, don't you? In a male-dominated world, she moves with authority, an authority granted by her position as a successful business owner. She is as comfortable in a boardroom, with her attache by her side, as she is in the trendiest of Philippian boutiques.”  

         Lydia hailed from Thyatira, a city in Asia Minor renowned for its textile industry.  There the finest linens were produced, including unusual and scarce purple cloth, the color of royalty and affluence.  There Lydia had built up her business and was a well-respected member of society – even if she was a woman.  When we meet her, she has relocated to Macedonia.  Business had been good in her hometown, but good sense and business acumen told her that it might well be better in the Roman colony of Philippi.

         Lydia was quite standout MBA grad.  However, this image of the successful businesswoman in her purple pants suit is only half of who she was.  There is more to discover about her, so the author of the Book of Acts also tells us that Lydia was a woman who worshipped God. Since she was not Jew, she must have been raised a pagan.  Lydia was a Gentile through and through. 

         However, when we meet her down by the riverside where Jews gathered to pray, we are told that she worshipped the Jewish God.  How unusual!  Now we do not know if Lydia gathered with her female companions in this secluded and quiet place outside the city gates regularly.  However, we do know that Lydia must have been a seeker, a searcher.  Lydia was a church shopper.  Imagine that!

         Of course, what Lydia did not herself know was that on this particular Sabbath of searching, she would meet the Christian missionary Paul who was himself on the lookout for anyone who might be open to learning about Jesus and the Gospel message. 

         And so the two seekers found each other on the riverbank that Sabbath. And we are told that because Lydia was blessed with the gift of being a good listener, she paid attention to what Paul said.  And so, as UCC pastor Ronald Cole-Turner remarked: “ There at the riverside, Lydia found the God who was finding her.” And she, along with her entire household, was baptized that afternoon.         

         There we have it.  As Presbyterian pastor, Robert Dunham sums it up: “We know almost nothing about Lydia, but what we know fascinates us. Who was this woman making her way independently in a world run by men? Who was this Gentile who sought the God of Judaism? The text only tells us that she was ‘a seller of purple goods, who was a worshiper of God.’ However, in just those two phrases, Scripture with its stunning brevity shows us that work and worship both had their place in the life of this remarkable, busy woman.” That work-worship, temporal-spiritual, secular-sacred balance is an important point in this story for us who struggle as we try to juggle those same dichotomies. 

         When I read Lydia’s story, I cannot help but draw comparisons between Lydia and two other Biblical women.  For me, Lydia is an astounding combination of Martha and Mary.  Do you remember those two in the Gospels? 

         Martha was the one who was always “out there” doing something.  She was the action taker. She was the one rattling around in the kitchen preparing a meal for Jesus. Martha was always busy.  Serving others – working - was who she was.  Her life was rich and full of activity. 

         Mary, on the other hand, was the one who sat at Jesus’ feet and listened attentively.  Compared to Martha’s high energy, Mary was quite different.  She was still – though not passive.  In her stillness, Mary was strong.  In her own quiet way, Mary stood up to all the men in the room who thought she had no place among them. 

         Martha was the “out there”, on the go, busy one. Mary was the “in here”, reflective seeker. Lydia was both. Think about it!  Lydia was the “out there”, on the go, successful businesswoman – as well as “in here” reflective seeker. 

         UCC pastor Lillian Daniel recently wrote an article in which she said “Mary and Martha are not two different people, one getting it right and one getting it wrong.  Mary and Martha are two halves of the human spirit, two parts that complement each other.  Martha and Mary aren’t fighting out there.  They are fighting in here, inside each one of us.”  (excerpt from “When Spiritual But Not Religious is Not Enough”)

         Lydia is such a wonderful role model when that battle rages within us.  Lydia illustrates that it is possible to be both “out there” and “in here”.  It is possible to carry both a briefcase and a Bible. It is possible to be both on the go like Martha even as you are seeking, listening, and learning like Mary.  It takes work.  It takes practice.  It takes discipline and commitment.  But it can be done, and I would assert that the melding of the two is better that way.

         Why?  Because that is what being an effective Christian is all about.  It is about that unique combination – some would say balancing act – of being “out there” living in the world – and being “in here” seeking God in community, experiencing the sacred while learning from, and listening to, one another.

         Being an effective Christian means reconciling the Martha and Mary in us all.  And there to help us is Lydia, that marvelous role model whom Paul discovered only by happenstance one Sunday afternoon down by the riverside.  However, it is surely a blessing for us that he did.

by Rev. Nancy Foran, Raymond Village Community Church (U.C.C.), Raymond, Maine