Europe Decides

Over the past number of days up to 400 million voters in 28 countries across the European Union have cast their votes in elections to the European Parliament. That’s a lot of people making a lot of decisions!

Acts chapter 16 is a part of the Bible that has always caught my eye. This is the part of the book of Acts where the action in the spread of the early church shifts for the first time to the European mainland. Paul and his co-workers arrive (somewhat unexpectedly) in the city of Philippi. The story is told in Acts chapter 16 verses 11-40.  In Philippi they meet a number of people. First up they meet a business woman called Lydia. Secondly they meet an unnamed slave girl, and thirdly they meet a working man – a Roman jailer. In this chapter these three (very different) people find themselves facing important decisions, decisions that centre on how they will respond to Jesus Christ.

The decisions they made, and all that followed is as they say ‘history’. The history of how across Europe people, regardless of nationhood or background, continue to be found by, and decide to follow, Jesus.