SCRIPTURE
Philippians 1:12-18a (NRSV)
I want you to know, beloved, that what has happened to me has actually helped
to spread the gospel, so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial
guard and to everyone else that my imprisonment is for Christ; and most of the
brothers and sisters, having been made confident in the Lord by my imprisonment,
dare to speak the word with greater boldness and without fear.
Some
proclaim Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from goodwill. These proclaim
Christ out of love, knowing that I have been put here for the defense of the
gospel; the others proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely but
intending to increase my suffering in my imprisonment. What does it matter?
ADVENT DEVOTION
Dear ones, Advent is an especially wonderful time to "speak the word with greater boldness and without fear."
At a time with so many of our family and friends are consummed with the anxiety and stress of a commercial Christmas season, we have the God-given opportunity to share CHRIST and to gently remind others that Jesus is the reason for the season.
If we will pray for our eyes to be opened, we will notice stressed out, anxious, fearful, and grieving people all around us. We will become sensitive to those who are pushed to the margins or laying in the ditch of life. We will hear the cries of the brokenhearted and seek to comfort the oppressed.
As CHRISTIANS, we have something to say to our brothers and sisters who are feeling lost and broken. We can share our own good news testimonies regarding how God has saved us from emotional, spiritual, physical, and/or mental peril. We can reassure others that God promises to bless and comfort those who are mourning. We can confidently speak life into hearts of those in need of resurrection this season.
Advent is a time of waiting. But, as we wait, we can share the love of God with others in need of the Good News Message that they are loved, forgiven, and set free to live abundant, blessed, and joyful lives!
May Christmas JOY be yours and may you share it with others. Peace...
PRAYER
Dear God, please help me to be bold and courageous as I share the good news that Jesus is the reason for the season. Amen.
Showing posts with label philippians 1. Show all posts
Showing posts with label philippians 1. Show all posts
Thursday, December 6, 2012
Friday, December 4, 2009
Deliverance
SCRIPTURE
Philippians 1:18b-26 (NRSV)
Paul rejoices though imprisoned
Yes, and I will continue to rejoice, for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance. It is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be put to shame in any way, but that by my speaking with all boldness, Christ will be exalted now as always in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, living is Christ and dying is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me; and I do not know which I prefer. I am hard pressed between the two: my desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better; but to remain in the flesh is more necessary for you. Since I am convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with all of you for your progress and joy in faith, so that I may share abundantly in your boasting in Christ Jesus when I come to you again.
DEVOTION
Recently I’ve been meditating on all of the difficult circumstances that God has brought me through.
It put me in the mind of the song “I Won’t Complain” by Rev. Paul Jones. In his lyrics he writes, “I've had some good days. I've had some hills to climb. I've had some weary days and some sleepless nights. But when I look around and I think things over--all of my good days outweigh my bad days, I won't complain.”
Although this song was penned a long time after Paul’s death, Paul must have been singing a similar refrain as he languished in prison on account of his faith. Rather than complaining, Paul boldly declared, “For to me, living is Christ and dying is gain.”
That’s a bold statement, isn’t it?
Although most of us are not facing trials or tribulations that are unto death, there are many times that we do feel hard pressed by life. I don’t know about you, but there have been some nights where tears have drenched my pillow and pain and grief have threatened to overwhelm me.
It is at times like these that we must remember that Paul said, “I will continue to rejoice, for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance.”
Hallelujah!
No matter what we are going through, we know that our God is mighty to save and a great deliverer.
In this season of Advent, we are daily reminded of this great Truth, for God saved us from the biggest, baddest, bully of all--SIN.
By allowing Love to give Jesus one Christmas morn, events were put into motion that led to the greatest salvation story of all time.
This story, summed up in a nutshell is, “Christ has died! Christ has risen! Christ shall come again!”
Because Jesus died on the cross, we are saved from our sin and gifted with eternal life. And because we have experienced this salvation, we look forward to the second coming of Christ and the establishment of a new heaven and earth!
Advent is a season of waiting, hoping, expecting, and repenting as Christians remember the first coming of Jesus on Christmas morn in a manger and look forward to the second coming of Jesus from the clouds and in great glory!
No matter what we are going through, when we have a saving relationship with Jesus Christ, we know how all of our stories will end.
And s/he lived happily ever after…The End.
Now, ain’ta that good news?!
Please pray with me:
Holy God, even in this Advent season when there is great joy all around me, I have to admit that I am worried about so many things. Today, I turn all of my fear and anxiety over to you. I know that you are mighty to save and that you proved it beyond a shadow of a doubt when you gave Jesus to die on the cross to save me from my sin and gift me with eternal life, then resurrected him on the third day in glory. Please forgive me of my sin and fill me with the Holy Spirit. May the Spirit of CHRISTmas infect my very soul so that I will be compelled to share your good news with everyone I meet! I pray this in Jesus’ Name, Amen.
SPECIAL NOTE
If you just prayed that prayer for the first time, today, you are saved! Let me encourage you to tell a Christian friend that you just put all of your hope in Jesus. Ask him or her to help you find a Bible that is easy for you to understand and to find a good Bible believing church where you can be baptized and make new friends who will walk with you on your Christian journey!
I would be honored if you would let me know about your decision today by clicking "YES" in the poll located in the upper-right hand corner of the good news blog in answer to the question, "Did God save you today?"
Congratulations and Happy Re-birthday! Your salvation is our GOOD NEWS, please go and share the GOOD NEWS with others!
Philippians 1:18b-26 (NRSV)
Paul rejoices though imprisoned
Yes, and I will continue to rejoice, for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance. It is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be put to shame in any way, but that by my speaking with all boldness, Christ will be exalted now as always in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, living is Christ and dying is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me; and I do not know which I prefer. I am hard pressed between the two: my desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better; but to remain in the flesh is more necessary for you. Since I am convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with all of you for your progress and joy in faith, so that I may share abundantly in your boasting in Christ Jesus when I come to you again.
DEVOTION
Recently I’ve been meditating on all of the difficult circumstances that God has brought me through.
It put me in the mind of the song “I Won’t Complain” by Rev. Paul Jones. In his lyrics he writes, “I've had some good days. I've had some hills to climb. I've had some weary days and some sleepless nights. But when I look around and I think things over--all of my good days outweigh my bad days, I won't complain.”
Although this song was penned a long time after Paul’s death, Paul must have been singing a similar refrain as he languished in prison on account of his faith. Rather than complaining, Paul boldly declared, “For to me, living is Christ and dying is gain.”
That’s a bold statement, isn’t it?
Although most of us are not facing trials or tribulations that are unto death, there are many times that we do feel hard pressed by life. I don’t know about you, but there have been some nights where tears have drenched my pillow and pain and grief have threatened to overwhelm me.
It is at times like these that we must remember that Paul said, “I will continue to rejoice, for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance.”
Hallelujah!
No matter what we are going through, we know that our God is mighty to save and a great deliverer.
In this season of Advent, we are daily reminded of this great Truth, for God saved us from the biggest, baddest, bully of all--SIN.
By allowing Love to give Jesus one Christmas morn, events were put into motion that led to the greatest salvation story of all time.
This story, summed up in a nutshell is, “Christ has died! Christ has risen! Christ shall come again!”
Because Jesus died on the cross, we are saved from our sin and gifted with eternal life. And because we have experienced this salvation, we look forward to the second coming of Christ and the establishment of a new heaven and earth!
Advent is a season of waiting, hoping, expecting, and repenting as Christians remember the first coming of Jesus on Christmas morn in a manger and look forward to the second coming of Jesus from the clouds and in great glory!
No matter what we are going through, when we have a saving relationship with Jesus Christ, we know how all of our stories will end.
And s/he lived happily ever after…The End.
Now, ain’ta that good news?!
Please pray with me:
Holy God, even in this Advent season when there is great joy all around me, I have to admit that I am worried about so many things. Today, I turn all of my fear and anxiety over to you. I know that you are mighty to save and that you proved it beyond a shadow of a doubt when you gave Jesus to die on the cross to save me from my sin and gift me with eternal life, then resurrected him on the third day in glory. Please forgive me of my sin and fill me with the Holy Spirit. May the Spirit of CHRISTmas infect my very soul so that I will be compelled to share your good news with everyone I meet! I pray this in Jesus’ Name, Amen.
SPECIAL NOTE
If you just prayed that prayer for the first time, today, you are saved! Let me encourage you to tell a Christian friend that you just put all of your hope in Jesus. Ask him or her to help you find a Bible that is easy for you to understand and to find a good Bible believing church where you can be baptized and make new friends who will walk with you on your Christian journey!
I would be honored if you would let me know about your decision today by clicking "YES" in the poll located in the upper-right hand corner of the good news blog in answer to the question, "Did God save you today?"
Congratulations and Happy Re-birthday! Your salvation is our GOOD NEWS, please go and share the GOOD NEWS with others!
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Proclaiming CHRIST!
SCRIPTURE
Philippians 1:12-18a (NRSV)
Proclaiming Christ
I want you to know, beloved, that what has happened to me has actually helped to spread the gospel, so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to everyone else that my imprisonment is for Christ; and most of the brothers and sisters, having been made confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, dare to speak the word with greater boldness and without fear.
Some proclaim Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from goodwill. These proclaim Christ out of love, knowing that I have been put here for the defense of the gospel; the others proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely but intending to increase my suffering in my imprisonment. What does it matter? Just this, that Christ is proclaimed in every way, whether out of false motives or true; and in that I rejoice.
DEVOTION
During this Advent Season, all Christians ought to feel joyful about the fact that Jesus is being proclaimed every day!
From the CHRISTmas carols that are playing on radio stations, to the CHRISTmas trees in public spaces, and the CHRISTmas opportunities to give to the Salvation Army and other non-for-profits doing good work, CHRIST is being celebrated everywhere we go 24/7/365.
Now, some will say that this is just commercialization of the good news message! Everybody is seeking to make a dime off of baby Jesus—and this may be so!
But, in the words of the Apostle Paul, “What does it matter? Just this, that Christ is proclaimed every way, whether out of false motives or true; and in that I rejoice!”
Now, does this commercialized proclamation let us Christians off the hook in the month of December? Of course not! Non-Christians can never do our work for us!
As Christians, we are commissioned to proclaim the birth, death and resurrection of Jesus at all times! We are to share His life and ministry with everyone who will listen!
What we offer is priceless. For instead of a commercialized, selfish, greedy, and stressful proclamation, we offer people “good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people (Luke 2:10).”
As we notice family, friends, co-workers, and neighbors highly anxious in this most holy of seasons, we are given the opportunity to share the love, joy, and peace of Jesus, which will calm all of their fears!
Hallelujah!
Isn’t it an honor that we get to take this God-given chance to tell everyone we meet that JESUS is the reason for the season! After all, we can’t have CHRISTmas, without CHRIST, right?
As we share the good news that God’s Love sent Jesus into the world one Christmas morning to save us from our sin and gift us with eternal life, we are extending to people the greatest gift of all time—RELATIONSHIP with God, through Jesus Christ!
Won’t you commit to sharing the good news with at least four people before CHRISTmas Day?
If so, please pray with me:
Holy One, this Advent Season is all about sharing the gift of your love. Please help me to remember the true meaning of CHRISTmas and to share it with everyone I meet. I am so glad that you gave Jesus to die on the cross to save me from my sin and gift me with eternal life! Please forgive me of my sin and fill me with the Holy Spirit so that I can share good news--and be good news--during this most holy season. I love you and I want to share our love with others. Today, I celebrate your birthday with joy in my heart and I look forward to your second coming with great anticipation. Come, Lord Jesus, Come! In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
SPECIAL NOTE
If you just prayed that prayer for the first time, today, you are saved! Let me encourage you to tell a Christian friend that you just put all of your hope in Jesus. Ask him or her to help you find a Bible that is easy for you to understand and to find a good Bible believing church where you can be baptized and make new friends who will walk with you on your Christian journey!
I would be honored if you would let me know about your decision today by clicking "YES" in the poll located in the upper-right hand corner of the good news blog in answer to the question, "Did God save you today?"
Congratulations and Happy Re-birthday! Your salvation is our GOOD NEWS, please go and share the GOOD NEWS with others!
ANNOUNCEMENT
If you are going to do any of your Christmas shopping on the web, I would like to invite you to access Amazon.com through this website. With every item that you purchase, you will be supporting the Good News Living ministry which brings the hope of Jesus Christ to 87 nations around the world! Please click the “Good News Living Christmas Store” link, at the top right-hand corner of the page, located just above my biography! Thank you!
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