Whether We Suffer Or Die

Philippians 1:12-30 KJV; 17th Sunday after Pentecost; Whether we suffer or die the Lord is with us. Even that is an opportunity to glorify God. 

Ambassador In Bondage

 

Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel,

For which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.

                                                                                    (Eph 6:18-20 KJV)

As St. Paul closed his letter to the Ephesians he asked them to pray always for all saints as well as for himself.  He asked that they pray that God would help him to continue to speak boldly what the Lord would have him speak. 

This would have been a very difficult time for most people to continue to share the Gospel as Paul wrote this letter from prison in Rome. Yet, he was well aware that was exactly where he was supposed to be. As a prisoner he would be able to share the news about Jesus not only with the faithful through letters but also to people who would not normally hear it.

Most of the country, indeed the world, has been placed in positions of semi-lockdowns due to Covid-19. We do not have the opportunities to see or fellowship with others as much as we were able to a year ago. But, we do have opportunity to proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom through Jesus Christ. God provides those opportunities, even if it is no more than social media which could be considered akin to writing a letter. Thanks be to God we do still get to see people although not quite as many nor as often as we use to. We can still be ambassadors of Christ to others even within our bonds.

May God open our mouths so that we might proclaim the Gospel and to proclaim it boldly whenever and wherever we might be.

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Gifts For The Glory Of God

"I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called,

With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love;

Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;

One Lord, one faith, one baptism,

One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.

But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.

Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.

And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;

For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:

Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:"   

                                                                       (Eph 4:1-8,11-13)

We are all called to serve, according to the vocation that we have been called. If you wonder what that would be for you; how you can serve, then look at your gifts. What gifts has God given you so that you might serve and His children most fruitfully? Consider your talents closely and how they can be used to build up the body of Christ. Do not think so highly of yourself thinking that you can do it all because no one person has all of the gifts necessary. 

"For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office:

So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.

Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith;

Or ministry, let us wait on our ministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching;

Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that sheweth mercy, with cheerfulness.." 

                                                                                      (Rom 12:4-7 KJV)

God gives to each of us gifts to support and build up on another; to build up the whole body of Christ. When they are used this way these gifts glorify God. We are all members of the one body in Christ. There is a purpose for the gifts that we have been given and it is not to glorify one member of that body; but, "For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith..."

As members of the body of Christ, may all that we say and think and do glorify our Father in heaven.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Patience

"I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace." Eph 4:1-3

There are times when my patience really wants to fly out the window. It can be a struggle to be patient with those who continue to make the same mistakes over and over again and wonder why they are having such a hard time in life.

A friend of mine once warned me that I should be very careful what I asked God for because He answers our prayers and we may not like the way in which He answers them. She was warning me against asking God to give me patience. She had asked for patience in caring for her family and He had answered. He helped her to learn to be patient by refining. As things grew even more troubled in her family, she learned to be patient with others even as she continued to care for and love them. She also learned to trust God in all things.

My friend has gone through a lot of trials. Yet, she is patient and kind and has an uncanny gift for maintaining unity in the bond of peace.

May we all bear one another in love, making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Patience

"I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace." Eph 4:1-3


Here is Paul, in prison, begging the Ephesians to lead lives with humility, gentleness, and patience bearing with one another in love. Paul met his imprisonment not just with patience; but with joy that the Lord had opened many doors in that prison so that he could proclaim the Good News to those who would not otherwise hear.


Some of the things that we lose patience with are pretty trivial compared to the troubles others suffer in the world. It would be best to ignore these minor obstacles and just move on past or over them. Don't let them interfere with what God has called you to do. Some of these minor inconveniences can make big breaks in our relationship with God and with one another when we allow them to. Rather, we ought to take advantage of what might seem to be a hindrance; because, it just might be a door opening for you. Those hindrance just might be a blessing rather than a curse. Live life!


May God help us to wait patiently, making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.


God's Peace - Pr. J

Don't Sweat The Small Stuff

"I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace."  Eph 4:1-3 NIV

I wrote no blog yesterday. The internet and cable television went down late Friday afternoon during a storm. I called it in. At first the man on the other end of the line said since I was the only one who was down in the area they probably wouldn't be able to send a tech out until Tuesday after the holiday; but, he would try to get them to call me Saturday morning (while I was at an appointment) to set up a time for them to come out and fix it. He had walked me through the usual, unplug the modem and plug it back it. I've been dealing with modems for a few years and already had done that; but, I patiently complied anyway, even as I explained that there had just been a bad storm and I was pretty sure I wasn't the only one who had lost their connections in the neighborhood. About an hour later I received a call from some one else from this company telling me that they had just declared an area outage and assured me they were sending out a tech to take care of it. She didn't say when; but, for some reason I assumed that evening. I let my son (who was previously a tech for another company) know that they were coming out. He laughed saying that I would probably have it back up and running the next morning around 10. He was right. The neighbors informed me that the tech had just left when I returned home from an appointment at about 10:15 yesterday morning.

Therefore, I wrote no blog yesterday. If I can't do it early in the morning, I rarely find time during the rest of the day and yesterday was no different. My days tend to be pretty full. There were plenty of other doors that were open; plenty of other directions to go in and to do.

I am getting better at having patience with cable and satellite companies. I have learned to wait on them without getting upset. I did not even roll my eyes; at least not more than once. I don't watch much television so that is never a problem. I have learned to wait on many things. Everything does not always go as I plan. But, life continues. There is no sense getting upset about something so minor and that we have no control over. There are so many things in this world that are so much worse than the internet not working or a television show or a computer game being disrupted. It can even be a good thing when we lose our connection with the world wide web from time to time.

Some of the things that we lose patience with are pretty trivial compared to the troubles others suffer in the world. It would be best to ignore these minor obstacles and just move on past or over them. Don't let them interfere with what God has called you to do. Take advantage of what might seem to be a hindrance; because, it just might be a door opening for you. 

God's Peace - Pr. J

We Are One

Valaam Monastery

I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all." Eph 4:1-6

It does not matter where you live geographically; if we are heirs of God's Kingdom; if we are members of the Body of Christ, we are one. We are not separate; but, one in Christ.

Many years ago, I visited Russian Karelia on a mission trip. I found the region to be very much like the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. I also found the people to be very much like the people who live there, as well. They were struggling with very much the same issues; except that their poverty level was much greater than ours at the time.

It saddens me that as countries and their leaders battle for political supremacy it seems that sometimes we forget about the people who live in these countries. It is as if foreign countries or even political parties within our own country, are inanimate objects; without flesh or blood or the Spirit. We forget to consider the harm that we might be doing to others, to ourselves and the world at large when we fail to recognize that our words and actions, due to our personal egos, harm and sometimes destroy children of God, our brothers and sisters in Christ. We sometimes seem to forget the many faithful brothers and sisters that live throughout the world, outside our own little circle of friends and family (sometimes we forget or ignore even them).

The Body of Christ is beyond comprehension. The members are spread throughout the world. They are in: Syria; Russia; Cuba; Iran; Iraq; Africa; India... They are everywhere; and, yes, even here in the United States. There is only One Body. So let us not forget in our prayers the many members of that body who suffer persecution. As we form our personal political agendas; let love and concern for our brothers and sisters in Christ; as well as for all people, guide our hearts, our minds, and our actions. so that no one suffers persecution by our own hands.

God grant that we should live in peace, reconciled to God and to one another.

God's Peace - Pr. J