Typically, biographical books start at the beginning of the subject’s life and progress onward in an orderly fashion and close with death. With Paul the apostle, the earliest histories are fragmentary at best, and many details are simply nonexistent. Yet Paul’s story isn’t really about Paul at all; it is about the spreading of the good news of salvation through belief in Jesus Christ and His sacrifice. The story much of it revealed in the letters of Paul to the congregations at Corinth, Galatia, Ephesus, Philippi, Colossae, and Thessalonica concerns the mission of Paul to the Gentiles and his perseverance in taking the gospel to “the uttermost part of the earth” (Acts 1:8, KJV). The spread of the gospel is the focus and not Paul.

That is where this devotional story begins.

Notice that throughout this account of the missionary work of Paul, italics highlight first-century women and their contributions to the fledgling church. Often these women defied the culture of the times at great personal risk and rose above their assigned station in life to make a difference for the cause of Christ.