Aug 29 – 2 Chronicles 33:21-24, 2 Chronicles 34, 2 Chronicles 35:1-19 2 Corinthians 2:12-17, 2 Corinthians 3:1-6 Psalm 104:1-18

2 Cor 2:12-13

When I came to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ, even though a door was opened for me in the Lord,

my spirit was not at rest because I did not find my brother Titus there. So I took leave of them and went on to Macedonia.

This is interesting – Paul arrives at trots to find an open door to stay there an preach. But not just any open door – he says “for me in the Lord”. So this is a door God opened. The circumstances were favourable.

Most of us would take that as a sign to go for it, not looking back. But Paul says his spirit was not at rest. Something was up and didn’t feel quite right to him.

What was it? What about Titus not being there made him feel uneasy? What would have happened if he stayed? Who knows?

Paul passes through Troas again, on his way back from this very trip and finds a Christian community there. (Acts 20:6) – so the open door must have been used by someone. Interesting, in Matthew Poole’s pulpit commentary he suggests Troas may have been the place of Pauls’ final arrest. Would staying have brought that arrest forward and robbed him of some of the work he still had to do?

It’s all speculation – but either way, this is true. It seemed like a good opportunity – but something felt wrong in his spirit.

Listen to that voice. Even when something seems open and right – that doesn’t mean it is. Not every open door leads to something good. Listen to the voice of God – if you don’t have peace, then that may mean something.

Psalm 104:5-6

He set the earth on its foundations,

so that it should never be moved.

You covered it with the deep as with a garment;

the waters stood above the mountains.

When we forget how big God is… just look at His creation. It’s amazing! He set the earth on it’s foundations – he put the sea where the seas are. Looking at the vastness of an ocean makes you feel so tiny, but the oceans are nothing to God.

It’s not just in the grand things – but in the small too. Look at the intricate work in a leaf – designed to absorb light from the sun and turn it into energy! How amazing is that?

In a grey. concrete, modern world it’s easy to forget this. It’s good to get outside and look at the wonder of creation. Even in something as simple as a leaf there is wonder to be found. Try and get outside today and have a look at what He’s made.