When God Opens Hearts | Acts 16:11-15

Paul crosses into Europe for the first time and finds not a synagogue but a small prayer gathering by a river in Philippi. There God opens the heart of a businesswoman named Lydia to respond to the gospel — a reminder that changed hearts, not changed circumstances, are what God is after, and that He is still doing that quiet, decisive work in ordinary people today.

Scripture: Acts 16:11-15
Series: Living by the Spirit, Following the Way

The Way Church KC is a community of misfits & saints in the Rosedale neighborhood of Kansas City following the Way of Jesus & pushing back darkness — together. Join us Sundays or learn more at thewaykc.church.

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:06

Welcome to Sermons from the Way Church KC and the community of Liz and Saints in Kansas City following the way of Jesus and pushing that and our message together.

SPEAKER_00 0:21

Good morning. All right, if everyone can make their way to their seat but stand for the reading of the Lord. Today we are in Acts 16, 11 through 15. So setting sail from Tras, we made a direct voyage to Samithras, and the following day to Neapolis, and from there to Philippi, which is a leading city in the district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. We remained in the city some days, and on the Sabbath day we went outside to the gate to the riverside, where we supposed there was a place of prayer, and we sat down and spoke to the women who had come together. One who heard us was a woman named Lydia from the city of Diatira, a seller of purple goods who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul. And after she was baptized and her household as well, she urged us, saying, If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay. And she prevailed upon us. You may be seated.

SPEAKER_02 1:34

Well, welcome everyone to the Way Church KC. It's a wonderful Sunday morning. And it is great to see all of you. If we haven't gotten the chance to meet, my name is Zach. I have the privilege of being the lead pastor here at the Waychurch KC. And if this is your first time here, we're a new church plant. We um launched two years ago, so I think I think we can still call ourselves new. Um I don't know how much longer we can. Um but it's it's been a sweet journey. Um if this is your first time, um, we'd love for you to connect with you, to fill out a connect card, um, and then we have a gift for you as well. But we'll go over that at the end of service. Um it's beautiful outside, isn't it? Yeah, yeah. Um I feel a little weird today because I don't have my usual crew on the front row. Um Lana is in the hospital, so let's keep her in our prayers. Um, and there's an empty slot for her wheelchair there. So I yeah, I don't know what to do. Maybe somebody should move up front. Crystal and Rachel, why don't you move up front? This is not this in. Cassie, you rock. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Yes, yes. Well, hey, real quick, I want to take a second to acknowledge someone that's been instrumental in my faith journey. Um, so uh back in the back over there is my friend Van and his wife, Denise. Um they're from Oklahoma City, they're with a church called Quill Springs Baptist Church. And when I lived in Oklahoma City, they were super instrumental in my my journey, especially uh Van. Um so he led this deal back then called Hoops Church. And I like basketball. I consider myself somewhat of a hooper. Um and I would go to Hoops Church every week, and it was some really good competition. Um, but every uh week he'd have a devotional with that. And then also Van would send out like this daily text message with scripture. Um and I I still remember that. Van, I was going uh to my text uh yesterday to text you before uh we met up, and what pulled up was also a thread of verses that you'd sent me and a handful of other dudes. Um so thank you for your faithfulness to that. Thank you for coming up and just seeing what the Lord is doing here at the Waychurch KC. Um very, very grateful for you. Um with that, I want to share one kind of funny story that has absolutely nothing to do with the sermon we'll be uh looking at today. Um but talking about basketball, Van also led upward sports. And so this is the extent of my basketball coaching career. I I went to Van, I said, Hey man, I'd love to serve, I'd love to coach in uh this basketball thing. He's like, All right, I got a team for you. So he plugged me up, plugged me in with a team, and let me just tell you guys, we won zero games. And we got into double digits twice. Twice. So I retired from coaching after that, but what I can tell you is that we faithfully preach the gospel to these kiddos every week, and that's what matters. We were not winners in the sport of basketball, but we were winners in God's kingdom. So that is that. Um, so if you've been with us for a little while, we've been walking through a sermon series through the book of Acts entitled Living by the Spirit and Following the Way. If you've got your Bible, you can go ahead and open to Acts 16, 11 through 15, as Danielle read. And if you don't have a Bible, we'd love to give you one right outside of the sanctuary doors. We have Bibles for you to have, for you to keep, for you to take notes, underline, highlights, mark up, do all the things. Um that is uh for you. Um thus far in the book of Acts, we've seen moments where the gospel explodes publicly. Uh thinking back to Acts chapter 2, we saw uh Pentecost when the fire of the Holy Spirit falls, and there are mass conversions, and we also see many people coming to faith in Jesus Christ in other sections of Acts. We've seen miracles performed, we've seen crowds gathering in amazement. And those are like monumental kind of uh flag planting moments for the early church. But what we see today are these other instances. Uh we see these quieter moments in the book of Acts. That's where we find ourselves in Acts 16, 11 through 15. We we don't see a sermon being preached to thousands, we don't see fire from heaven falling on the early church, we don't see crowds filling the streets, but we see a riverside, we see a small gathering for prayer, we see a simple conversation about the risen Christ, and we see a woman whose heart the Lord opens. And what we see, what I believe that we'll see, is that this quiet moment it changes history. Acts chapter 16, it records the gospel crossing from Asia into Macedonia. This is the first entrance of the gospel into what we now call Europe. In Acts 16, it significantly records the first conversion in modern day Europe. Remember last week, as we closed up Acts 15, we looked at how God used conflict, how God used relationships, how God used detours in order to direct the gospel to this place. And that's where we find ourselves in today's text, the aftermath of the detour, if you will. The gospel, it crosses into Macedonia, it enters Philippi, and the first person that Luke highlights is not a politician, is not a philosopher, is not a military commander, as we've seen earlier in the book of Acts, but it is a businesswoman named Lydia, whose heart God opens through the preaching of the risen Christ. And what Luke wants us to see is this. Here's our big idea this morning. Our big idea is this that the success of the gospel does not ultimately rest on human ability, but on God's radical grace. The success of the gospel does not rest on human ability, but on God's radical grace. And family, what I hope that you hear and see this morning is that that is a truth that should both humble us and encourage us. Think about this. Have you ever tried to push open a locked door? Anybody ever tried to do that? Maybe it was like a, you know, a sliding glass door and you pushed instead of pulled, or maybe it was like a swinging door and um you went to push and it was locked. I I do that with our glass doors here often. Like I'm walking with a purpose and I go up to that door and it's locked. I'm like, oops, I forgot to unlock it. Maybe you lean harder at first, maybe you push against it, maybe if it's like at your house, you jiggle the door handle. But no matter how determined you are, the door will not open unless someone unlocks it. And I think if we're being real, that that is the human heart apart from God's grace. The gospel is proclaimed, the truth is spoken, Christ is offered, but unless God opens the heart, people remain spiritually closed and in all honesty, spiritually dead. And yet, when God opens a heart, everything changes. Everything changes. That's Lydia's story in this text. And in many ways, I believe it is every Christian's story. It's my story, and I believe it's most of your stories as well. So, how does this story begin? How does this section of text begin? Well, it begins with God directing his servants exactly where he wants them. Before God opens Lydia's heart, he first orders Paul's steps. I'll pray and then let's dig in. Heavenly Father, we love you, we praise you, we thank you for bringing us here together today to worship together, to sit under the preaching of your word. God, I pray that you would illuminate your son Jesus Christ as we look at your word. I pray that we would lift your name high. God, I pray that you would move me out of the way and that you would let your words be made clear. Holy Spirit, would you pierce our hearts? Would you open our ears? Would you open our minds to the truth of who you are and what you desire to do in and through us? Lord, we love you, we praise you. And it's in the mighty name of Jesus I pray. And all God's people said, Amen, amen. So point number one this morning is follow God's providential leading. Follow God's providential leading. Acts chapter 16, verses 11 through 13 read this. So setting sail from Troas, we made a direct voyage to Samothracy, and the following day to Neapolis, and from there to Philippi, which is a leading city of the district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. We remained in this city some days, and on the Sabbath day we went outside the gates to the riverside, where we supposed there was a place of prayer, and we sat down and spoke to the women who had come together. So Paul and his companions, they arrive in Philippi after being redirected by the Holy Spirit. Remember, we saw that last week, earlier in Acts, what we've seen is the Spirit forbid them from entering certain regions. Their plans were interrupted, and Paul received the Macedonian call or the Macedonian vision. And now they arrive in Philippi, and this was a strategic city in Rome. This was a strategic Roman colony in Macedonia. So Philippi was deeply, deeply Roman. It was filled with military influence. So they had a lot of like patriotic and cultural pride. And what they were known for is their pagan worship. So from a strictly human perspective, this would not have been seen as fertile ground for the expansion of the gospel. And yet, this is exactly where God sends them. Because here's the truth for us this morning. Hear this: God often leads his people into spiritually difficult places in order to display his sovereign power. God leads people into difficult places in order to display his power and might. You know, and just from a strictly like pragmatic sort of way of looking at things, like church planting, um, most church planters in this city are not picking Rosedale or not picking an urban kind of an urban neighborhood outside of city center to plant a church. It's, you know, strategically, it's a more difficult place to plant, but it's where God has directed us as a church. God has led us here to this neighborhood of Rosedale in order to display his power. I fully, I wholeheartedly believe that. And as we continue looking at the text, like, notice something interesting here. There seems to be no synagogue in Philippi. But we don't know this directly, but that's what the text is alluding to. As we've seen throughout Paul's first missionary journey, normally he begins his ministry in synagogues. But apparently there were not enough Jewish men in order to establish one. So on the Sabbath, what they would usually do is go to the synagogue, but here in Philippi, they go outside the city gate and they go to the riverside where people gathered for prayer. There's no spotlight, there's no stage, there's no crowds, there's no smoke machine, there's no lights. Just a simple prayer meeting and faithful obedience. And it is there, it is in this place, it's at this prayer meeting that they meet Lydia. And what I think we see is that the author, Luke, he repeatedly emphasizes God's guiding hand, God's divine direction throughout this section of text and throughout Paul's missionary journeys, really. Because the missionaries, Paul and his companions, they're guided, they're redirected, they're restrained at times, and they're led by God. So I think that what Luke wants us to understand is that the mission advances not because of Paul's gifting, not because of anything in and of himself, but the mission advances because God is directing it. And family, can I just tell you that that is still true today? The mission of Christ's church advances because God is directing it. And the same is true for us as a church family. The mission of the Way KC advances because God is directing it. There's not anyone in this room. It's like that your gifting, that your skill, that your pedigree is like what's building the church, right? No, it is only God who is directing and building his church. The church, it doesn't create divine appointments. The church does not manufacture moves of the Holy Spirit. That is God. Think back to the book of Genesis. Maybe you've read the story, maybe you haven't. Joseph is sold into slavery by his brothers, so he experiences betrayal, he experiences slavery, false accusation, imprisonment. And we're not going to go into the weeds of that right now, but here's what I want you to see. What Joseph says is this what the enemy meant for evil, God meant it for good. So God all the way back from the book of Genesis, God was orchestrating every painful detour for a greater purpose. And the same is true here in the book of Acts, and the same is true for us today. Every mile traveled, every closed door, every redirection was leading Paul to a riverside conversation with Lydia. So ask yourself, where is God leading you? Remember last week we talked about all the closed doors and redirections and detours that God may be taking you on? And I think some of you related to that. So if that is you, where is God leading you? What is he trying to do through that redirect, through that closed door? How does he want to use you in that redirect? You know, we can we can get so caught up and focus on like, hey, why did that door close? Why did that opportunity fall apart? Why did God move me here? Why did my plans change? Well, for the Apostle Paul, we begin to see the answer for him right here in the text. God had closed doors, the Spirit had redirected them, and the purpose, one of the purposes, was yes, plant a bunch of churches, but also, like God's in the details and the big picture, the purpose was to bring them to this riverside appointment with Lydia. You see, what we what we learn is that God governs even interruptions for kingdom purposes. So don't miss this, family. Some of the greatest gospel opportunities in your life may come through unexpected detours. So the response that we should have is to follow where God leads, to trust in his providential hand that is guiding us, and to stay sensitive to divine appointments. Like, think about when you're maybe at you're at a gas station. I remember a story Rivers shared about that, or whatever it is, wherever you live, work and play, and you get that like nudging, you get that prompting from the Holy Spirit to like have that conversation. Are you gonna be obedient to that? Are you gonna say, hey, I'm Glenn, nice to meet you. What's your story? And then, Lord willing, it leads into a gospel conversation. My hope is that you put your yes on the table with that. You are sensitive to where God is directing you, even in the redirection, that you're sensitive to those divine appointments. Because the fact of the matter and what we learn from this text is that God is preparing hearts long before we arrive. That's what he was doing here in Acts. That's what he's doing in our neighborhood of Rosedale, that's what he's doing across Kansas City, that's what he's doing where we've sent missionaries. God has gone before us. And what I think we see, like if we're just kind of glossing over this section of text, this second missionary journey of Paul's, we may think that the greatest miracle in this passage is that Paul crossed the sea into Macedonia. But I think as we zoom in and we look at these five verses, one could argue that the greatest miracle is that God crossed into a human heart. That God opened Lydia's heart. Because reaching Philippi, yes, it was a goal, but it was never the final goal. God, in his grace and in his mercy, had come for Lydia. Which brings us to point number two. Trust God to open hearts. Trust God to open hearts. Acts chapter 16, verse 14 reads. I lost my place. One who heard us was a woman named Lydia from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple goods, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul. So this is the center of this passage. The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul. And the author Luke, he gives us several details about Lydia. She was from Thyatira, she was a seller of purple goods, and it says that she was a worshiper of God. This does not mean that she was yet a believer in Jesus Christ, but she had a higher power. Most likely, it was the Yahweh of the Jewish people. And this purple cloth, that's an important point because it shows us that what she was associated with was wealth, was luxury, and status. So that means Lydia, she was financially successful, very likely, that she was very likely socially respected. She had some form of religious nature. She was moral and she was very likely interested in spiritual things. She was a worshiper of God, is what the text says. And yet, what we see is that she still needed salvation. She still needed to confess with her mouth and believe in her heart that Jesus Christ was Lord and Savior. Because the fact of the matter is, is that morality is not the same as a changed heart. Living rightly is not synonymous. I mean, it's not a replacement for a heart that's been pierced by Jesus Christ. Because a person can be religious. A person can be ethical. A person can be successful. A person can even be spiritually curious. And yet still need a new heart. The phrase, the Lord opened her heart, it's important for us to see. So the Greek word for opened, it means to open fully or to unlock. Think about that door analogy we looked at earlier. Or to enable understanding. And Luke uses similar language in the gospel that he wrote when Jesus opens minds to understand scriptures. And so what I don't want us to see is that this is merely like intellectual agreements. No, what this is, is divine illumination. The word of God is being illuminated to Lydia. Paul, he preached externally, he vocally preached. God worked internally. That's Lydia's conversion story. And my guess is that yours is similar. And what I think we see is that this verse holds like two tensions together in a beautiful way. Both human responsibility and God's divine sovereignty. Paul, he still preached, Lydia still listened, Lydia still believed, but underneath it all, God was opening her heart. Salvation, it is not ultimately explained by one's personality, by intellect, like having the utmost knowledge, not by emotional sensitivity, not by persuasive technique. No, salvation is a miracle of God's grace. And ultimately, what we should see clearly is the Lord Jesus Christ. This text should point us directly to Jesus. Throughout the Gospels, remember we we preached the sermon series through the book of Luke. Throughout the gospel accounts, Jesus opens what sin is closed. Be that blind eyes, be that deaf ears, be that crippled bodies, be that hardened hearts, whatever it may be, through his death and resurrection, Christ makes spiritual transformation possible. And remember, we, if we look back to Acts chapter one, I believe. Acts chapter one, verse eight. This is kind of the thematic verse of our Acts Sermon series. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth. Jerusalem, local. Judea and Samaria, more regional, ends of the earth. Ends of the earth. Right? And we're beginning to see this continue to play out in the book of Acts. Lydia's conversion, it's a picture of Christ gathering worshipers from every nation. The gospel has now entered Europe. And the first convert that Luke highlights is a Gentile woman by a river. And that is the power of God's grace, Malemu. You believe that? Amen. You you can think about this. You can place like a beautiful painting in front of someone who's here gone to like the Nelson Atkins Museum, right? A lot of beautiful paintings there, a lot of really beautiful early church sort of paintings, Christian paintings, a lot of beautiful paintings. But think about this. Picture yourself being blind. You go to the Nelson Atkins, and you're in front of the most beautiful painting there. Nobody's gonna argue that it's a beautiful painting, but unless your eyes are truly opened, you cannot see its beauty. Or maybe that illustration doesn't hit for you. I got one for you from yesterday. So I ran a 5K, Joshua. Joshua did too. I ran a 5K yesterday, and I like gave it my all, and I didn't wear my glasses. I'm like blind without my glasses. Like blind blind. Like everything's a blur. So it's like the home stretch, the last straightaway, and I'm giving it my all. I'm pumping everything I got. I wasn't wearing my glasses though, and Chelsea and Louie and Ashton and Jen are there like cheering us on. I could not see them cheering us on. I'm just it they were a blur. All of them were a blur. Not because I was running super fast, but because I didn't have my glasses on. Everyone was a blur. Even when I stopped. We have to have eyes that truly see, though. We have to have a new pair of grace glasses, if you will. Because apart from grace, Crystal, sinners like us, like you and like me, cannot see who Christ truly is. The problem is not with the glory of Christ. The problem is spiritual blindness. And only God can open blind hearts. Family, this should greatly impact how we approach evangelism. We share boldly, yes. We preach faithfully, yes. And we persuade lovingly, yes, but we're not trying to manipulate. We're not trying to use like the most strategic technique because that's what's gonna save them. No. Only God opens hearts. So that means as we're out doing the work of evangelism, as we're presenting the gospel next week at sports camp, it's not our job to bring about one's salvation. So we do not lose hope over unbelieving family members. I was talking to a friend a few weeks ago, and they're just broken because a family member of theirs has completely walked away from the faith. And this is a truth for that person today, because it's not their job to bring their unbelieving family member to Christ. God will do that work. That also means that we don't despair over prodigals, right? Those who have wandered away from the Father, who are squandering their inheritance through him in the things of this world, be it addiction, be it money, be it whatever it is, like they're not, we're not despairing over them. We're expecting God to bring them back. And also, another truth for us with this is that we we don't assume that someone is beyond God's grace. Think about where you were at your lowest of lows, your rock bottom of sorts. I think about it for me. So far from God, no relationship with him, living in the darkness, living in the wilderness. But praise God. One, that he offered his grace freely to me, but two, that there are some people around me that did not assume that I was too far gone. Because by looks, by all for all intents and purposes, I was too far gone. But God. Here's the fact of the matter. The God who opened Lydia's heart is the same God who can open anyone's heart. Still, today, May what? May May 17th of 2026. So let us never forget that we are not saved because we are wiser than others, because we have a degree, and this person doesn't, because you know, we've uh been in the church since before we could like remember anything. Like, let's not think like that. No, you are saved because God is merciful to you. And we know that God is merciful because God truly opens hearts. And whenever God truly opens a heart, what follows is transformation. Grace, it never remains invisible. Because the same Lydia who sat praying by the riverside, who heard the risen Christ being preached, now begins responding with joyful obedience. Because what an open heart does, an open heart, it always begins producing visible fruit. Which brings us to point number three and our final point this morning. Respond to grace with open handed obedience. Respond to grace with open handed obedience. Acts chapter 16, verse 15. The word of God says, And after she was baptized and her household as well, she urged us, saying, If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay. And she prevailed upon us. So after Lydia believes, Luke immediately records her response. After she was baptized and her household as well. So she immediately takes that faith step of baptism. Baptism is in Scripture and today as well. It's the first step of obedience for the believer. It's the first visible fruit of one's faith in Christ. And sidebar, we have baptism Sunday next week. Um, we have my brother Tim getting baptized, which I'm stoked about. Um, yeah, yeah. But also, if like that's you and you're like, hey, I'm ready to take that step of baptism, like we'd love to talk about that. Real conversion, it always produces fruit. Not perfect fruit, not perfect fruit, but real fruit. Then Lydia says, Come to my house and stay. Come to my house and stay. The open heart becomes an open home. And that's a beautiful truth that we see in this text. That's critical for us to see. Because hospitality, like we don't have necessarily the framework for this today in our like culture of hyper-individualism. I think some of my brothers and sisters who have been on the field as a missionary see this differently, probably like hospitality, it's something that is of the utmost importance in other cultures. Is that fair to say, Glenn? And especially here in the ancient world. Hospitality was essential for gospel ministry in the time of this text. Traveling missionaries, they depended upon believers opening their homes. So, Lydia, what she's doing is after she is saved, after she gives her life to the Lord Jesus Christ, she immediately begins to use her resources for the advancement of Christ's kingdom. In all likelihood, her home became one of the first gathering places for the Philippian church. If you've read the book of Philippians, that's Paul's letter to the church at Philippi. So notice a few things. God does not erase like who Lydia is, he doesn't erase Lydia's personality, he doesn't erase Lydia's gifting, he doesn't even erase her vocation. But what he does do is redirect those things for his kingdom purposes. Her wealth, her business, her home, her influence become tools for the work of the gospel ministry. So what we should see is that grace transforms not only what we believe, but it also transforms how we live. So wherever you're sitting, ask yourself this What has God entrusted you with? Maybe it's a home, maybe it's a career, maybe it's influence in a place that other people don't have influence in. Maybe it's your finances, maybe it's your abilities, like whatever it is, what I believe is that God has entrusted each of us with something that we can use for the advancement of his kingdom. Whatever that thing is, ask yourself this. Do you see these things primarily as personal possessions? Or do you see them as kingdom opportunities? Because the fact of the matter is that what an open heart produces is open hands. Here I am, Lord. Use me. One of our values as a church is radical hospitality. Are we living that out week by week and day by day? What the gospel does, Crystal, is it loosens our grip on comfort. It loosens our grip on possessions because Christ becomes our greatest treasure. True conversion, it produces visible obedience. Our hands are loosened from clinging to the things of this world, and the only thing that we desire to cling to is the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. And that is Lydia's story. Lydia's story, it may seem quiet compared to the spirit falling at Pentecost or to the great crowds that we see throughout Acts. But this passage, these verses remind us that no conversion is small. That every opened heart is a miracle of God's grace. And that the same Lord who opened Lydia's heart is still opening hearts today. Be it at church, be it on the front porch before church, be it at a coffee shop, be it at lunch after church with one of your brothers or sisters, whatever it is, the Lord's still opening hearts today. I think about this, this is a complete detour of the sermon, but I think about the cross that we have up here. Now, some of us who have been around a little while know the story of this cross. This was uh the woodworks, it was built, it was put together by uh a guy named Noah. Noah Valdivia. Um, some of you may know him, some of you may not. So Noah and his wife Cass uh Ryan. I was looking at Cassie. You weren't married to Noah. Noah and Ryan were the first two baptisms that we had in this building. Okay. And uh Noah, he didn't give his life to Jesus like sitting under at a church service. Noah gave his life to Jesus through three men who were sharing the gospel with him at their garage door manufacturer that they worked at. River, Cameron, and Jeremy for months were sharing Jesus' love, showing Jesus' grace and mercy to him, just working side by side, building these luxury garage doors. And Noah gave his life to Jesus, and then his wife Ryan gave her life to Jesus, and then they were baptized. And some of us may be like, you hear stories like that, and you're like, okay, cool. You know, it wasn't like this, you know, mass uh um revelation of a bunch of people. It wasn't like, you know, the spirit falling at a church service, but it was in the quiet, everyday work of building garage doors where the Lord Jesus saved him. And they they Noah joined the Navy and they're off in like San Diego, California now. But we I remember that story because of that cross that we have up there in the middle. Those are the sort of stories that I think that God delights in writing. And those are the stories that get me pumped up about the work that He desires to do in and through this church. What Lydia's story reminds us, and what Noah's story reminds us, and maybe what your story reminds us of, is that salvation, the opening of one's heart is ultimately the work of God. Now, don't hear that I'm saying we don't have a part to play. We have a part to play. Absolutely, yes. We must believe in our hearts, can confess with our mouths that Christ is Lord and Savior. There's this free will aspect within it, but God opens the heart. God pierces the heart. And here in Lydia's story, Paul preached, Lydia listened, but the Lord opened her heart. And once her heart was opened, she believed, she obeyed, and she became a blessing to others. Ashton, you can come up and begin to close this. So, church, the encouragement for you this morning is to follow God's providential leading wherever that may be. Maybe it's today while you're walking home on Lloyd Street. Maybe it's today as you drive back to your sober living home and have a conversation with some guys who aren't believers over there. Maybe it's today while you're at your usual Sunday restaurant spot with your family. Like whatever it is, follow God's leading and like have the courage and ask for the courage from God and the strength to have those conversations. Because we're trusting God to open hearts. We're not open in hearts, God's open in the hearts. And we should respond. God has gifted us with his grace. So the call for us is to respond to his grace with obedient faith. Open hands. He's opened our heart. Our response is to open our hands. I think of you, Stephanie, and just the way that you've uh been willing, been open-handed, like, hey, how can I step in and serve at the sports camp and serve these kiddos, right? Like the conversations we've had have been an encouragement to me. So thank you for that. Open heart, open hands. And if you're sitting here today and you are not yet a Christian, hear this clearly. The same Christ who opens Lydia's heart is still saving sinners today. So the call is the same. Come to him, trust in him, call upon him. I'd love to talk with you and pray with you to receive Christ if that is you. Because what I believe is that Jesus still opens blind eyes, Jesus still opens hard hearts, Jesus still awakens dead sinners, and Jesus still welcomes us into his kingdom by grace alone. I'll pray and then we'll close in worship. Heavenly Father, we love you, we praise you, we thank you for being here in the room among us today. I pray that you have pierced our hearts, that you have made your word clear through my feeble attempt at preaching your word. God, I count it a privilege to do church with these people, to be a church planter alongside these incredible men and women who you've called here. Lord, let us see conversion stories like Lydia's in the ministry we do. God, would you grace us with conversations, simple conversations by a riverside, at our place of work, at our home, wherever it may be, that are just simple conversations about the risen Christ, Lord. Let us see you in the everyday, mundane things of life, Lord. Jesus, we love you. We thank you for coming to this earth, for living, for dying on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins, being buried in the tomb. And Lord, we praise you that three days later the tomb was empty. And God, we acknowledge and praise that today you are seated at the right hand of God the Father, that Jesus is seated at your right hand, and that he's interceding on our behalf today. We love you, we praise you. It's in the mighty name of Jesus, I pray. And everybody said, Amen.

unknown 44:49

Amen.

SPEAKER_01 44:52

Thanks for listening. Join us Sundays at 10 30 a.m. in the Rosedale neighborhood of Kansas City. Or find us anytime at the wakeac.church.