Daily Manna (Coffee with Jesus)

My mom was a meticulous dresser.  In today’s sociological terms, you might have called her obsessive.  Her dress had to fit right and feel right.  Her shoes, purse, and other accessories must match the outfit.  As a child, sitting on the bed, I would watch I would watch the process of getting ready for work before going next door to our babysitter with my younger brother. Fixing her thick dark head of hair was a work of getting every unruly hair follicle in place.  Then the final touch was to spray a blinding, chocking, sticky solution over it to hold it in place for the day.  (I can still smell and taste it!)  But as she worked on herself, it was a talk time for us.

I was proud of my Mom.  She was very talented as an executive secretary for an oil firm in downtown Oklahoma City.  She was fast and efficient in all she did.  She became a valuable resource for the company, doing the work of those she worked for in ways that amazed them at times.  I know this because they hired me for a summer break between college classes!  I watched her at work as she answered the calls and helped people find the solutions they needed with apparent ease.  She was learner, picking up all the details quickly, so she could helpful in the workplace

Mom worked among well-dressed executives who had the best clothes money could buy.  Being a working woman of the sixties; mom would never be paid as much as the men, but that didn’t matter to the quality of her work.  Doing her best with what she had and being the best she could be in her work was her consistent goal.  

Mom was a believer.  The real Master of her life and work was Jesus.  The “clothes” she put on the inside was just as important as the clothes she wore on the outside.  The same work ethic was taught and demonstrated in our home and at the church we attended.  I knew that my mom would be the same in any place or circumstance with whoever she related because of what she wore on the inside.  She wore the designer clothes of her Master, clothes that last forever.  I will see her again someday in those glorious clothes Jesus gave her for heaven with Him.  I am grateful for her teaching that was instilled by Jesus to me.  How do I know, Jesus is my Master, too!

Colossians 3, The Message

He Is Your Life

3 ^1-2 So if you’re serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which Christ presides. Don’t shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ—that’s where the action is. See things from his perspective.

^3-4 Your old life is dead. Your new life, which is your real life—even though invisible to spectators—is with Christ in God. He is your life. When Christ (your real life, remember) shows up again on this earth, you’ll show up, too—the real you, the glorious you. Meanwhile, be content with obscurity, like Christ.

^5-8 And that means killing off everything connected with that way of death: sexual promiscuity, impurity, lust, doing whatever you feel like whenever you feel like it, and grabbing whatever attracts your fancy. That’s a life shaped by things and feelings instead of by God. It’s because of this kind of thing that God is about to explode in anger. It wasn’t long ago that you were doing all that stuff and not knowing any better. But you know better now, so make sure it’s all gone for good: bad temper, irritability, meanness, profanity, dirty talk.

^9-11 Don’t lie to one another. You’re done with that old life. It’s like a filthy set of ill-fitting clothes you’ve stripped off and put in the fire. Now you’re dressed in a new wardrobe. Every item of your new way of life is custom-made by the Creator, with his label on it. All the old fashions are now obsolete. Words like Jewish and non-Jewish, religious and irreligious, insider and outsider, uncivilized and uncouth, slave and free, mean nothing. From now on everyone is defined by Christ, everyone is included in Christ.

^12-14 So, chosen by God for this new life of love, dress in the wardrobe God picked out for you: compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength, discipline. Be even-tempered, content with second place, quick to forgive an offense. Forgive as quickly and completely as the Master forgave you. And regardless of what else you put on, wear love. It’s your basic, all-purpose garment. Never be without it.

^15-17 Let the peace of Christ keep you in tune with each other, in step with each other. None of this going off and doing your own thing. And cultivate thankfulness. Let the Word of Christ—the Message—have the run of the house. Give it plenty of room in your lives. Instruct and direct one another using good common sense. And sing, sing your hearts out to God! Let every detail in your lives—words, actions, whatever—be done in the name of the Master, Jesus, thanking God the Father every step of the way.

* * *

¹⁸ Wives, understand and support your husbands by submitting to them in ways that honor the Master.

¹⁹ Husbands, go all out in love for your wives. Don’t take advantage of them.

²⁰ Children, do what your parents tell you. This delights the Master no end.

²¹ Parents, don’t come down too hard on your children or you’ll crush their spirits.

^22-25 Servants, do what you’re told by your earthly masters. And don’t just do the minimum that will get you by. Do your best. Work from the heart for your real Master, for God, confident that you’ll get paid in full when you come into your inheritance. Keep in mind always that the ultimate Master you’re serving is Christ. The sullen servant who does shoddy work will be held responsible. Being a follower of Jesus doesn’t cover up bad work.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

“If you’re serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it.”  Paul’s passion is evident.  Get and Be serious.  Our behaviors must match what we say we believe about Jesus!  As much as mom matched accessories to her dress all the more our behaviors must match what we believe. 

“Every item of your new way of life is custom-made by the Creator”  Wear the newest and latest by our Designer who gave us real life!  “…dress in the wardrobe God picked out for you: compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength, discipline. Be even-tempered, content with second place, quick to forgive an offense. Forgive as quickly and completely as the Master forgave you. And regardless of what else you put on, wear love. It’s your basic, all-purpose garment. Never be without it.”

Paul includes a “tagline” to this part of the letter for obvious reasons to me this morning—all this begins at home in our hearts and goes with us in the all the details of our lives!  Husbands, Wives, Children, Employees, Employers, Servants of God—Submit, respect, love generously, understand, support, obey, because “every detail in your lives—words, actions, whatever—is to be done in the name of the Master, Jesus, thanking God the Father every step of the way.”

“Keep in mind always that the ultimate Master you’re serving is Christ!”

Lord,

Thank you for helping me get “dressed” this morning.  Thank you for demonstrating real love by saving my soul.  Thank you for real life that follows my believing, a life that is eternal and nonrefundable!  Thank you for always being with us to help us stay dressed in your love—the most important garment!

In Jesus Name, Amen

Most of us seek a life that has significance.  We desire to be confident in what we think, say, and do.  We want our lives to count for something good.  We avoid people who think we are worthless in their eyes, count for nothing, and up to no good.  If we fall for that line of thinking, we become self-fulfilling prophecies of insignificance.  If we pause to ponder for a bit, we realize we crave a life of substance.  If fact, most people in our world are after the same goal—substance with a firm foundation.

Paul’s letter gave tribute to the power and glory of Christ. While commending the Colossians for their actions, he reminded them that Christ’s power comes not from what we know, but who we know—Jesus Christ.  Jesus is the very substance of life we have been seeking because He is the Source of Life eternal.  There is no other foundation upon which we can build a life of substance that lasts for eternity!

Colossians 2, The Message

I want you to realize that I continue to work as hard as I know how for you, and also for the Christians over at Laodicea. Not many of you have met me face-to-face, but that doesn’t make any difference. Know that I’m on your side, right alongside you. You’re not in this alone.

^2-4 I want you woven into a tapestry of love, in touch with everything there is to know of God. Then you will have minds confident and at rest, focused on Christ, God’s great mystery. All the richest treasures of wisdom and knowledge are embedded in that mystery and nowhere else. And we’ve been shown the mystery! I’m telling you this because I don’t want anyone leading you off on some wild-goose chase, after other so-called mysteries, or “the Secret.”

⁵ I’m a long way off, true, and you may never lay eyes on me, but believe me, I’m on your side, right beside you. I am delighted to hear of the careful and orderly ways you conduct your affairs, and impressed with the solid substance of your faith in Christ.

From the Shadows to the Substance

^6-7 My counsel for you is simple and straightforward: Just go ahead with what you’ve been given. You received Christ Jesus, the Master; now live him. You’re deeply rooted in him. You’re well constructed upon him. You know your way around the faith. Now do what you’ve been taught. School’s out; quit studying the subject and start living it! And let your living spill over into thanksgiving.

^8-10 Watch out for people who try to dazzle you with big words and intellectual double-talk. They want to drag you off into endless arguments that never amount to anything. They spread their ideas through the empty traditions of human beings and the empty superstitions of spirit beings. But that’s not the way of Christ. Everything of God gets expressed in him, so you can see and hear him clearly. You don’t need a telescope, a microscope, or a horoscope to realize the fullness of Christ, and the emptiness of the universe without him. When you come to him, that fullness comes together for you, too. His power extends over everything.

^11-15 Entering into this fullness is not something you figure out or achieve. It’s not a matter of being circumcised or keeping a long list of laws. No, you’re already in—insiders—not through some secretive initiation rite but rather through what Christ has already gone through for you, destroying the power of sin. If it’s an initiation ritual you’re after, you’ve already been through it by submitting to baptism. Going under the water was a burial of your old life; coming up out of it was a resurrection, God raising you from the dead as he did Christ. When you were stuck in your old sin-dead life, you were incapable of responding to God. God brought you alive—right along with Christ! Think of it! All sins forgiven, the slate wiped clean, that old arrest warrant canceled and nailed to Christ’s cross. He stripped all the spiritual tyrants in the universe of their sham authority at the Cross and marched them naked through the streets.

^16-17 So don’t put up with anyone pressuring you in details of diet, worship services, or holy days. All those things are mere shadows cast before what was to come; the substance is Christ.

^18-19 Don’t tolerate people who try to run your life, ordering you to bow and scrape, insisting that you join their obsession with angels and that you seek out visions. They’re a lot of hot air, that’s all they are. They’re completely out of touch with the source of life, Christ, who puts us together in one piece, whose very breath and blood flow through us. He is the Head and we are the body. We can grow up healthy in God only as he nourishes us.

^20-23 So, then, if with Christ you’ve put all that puffed-up and childish religion behind you, why do you let yourselves be bullied by it? “Don’t touch this! Don’t taste that! Don’t go near this!” Do you think things that are here today and gone tomorrow are worth that kind of attention? Such things sound impressive if said in a deep enough voice. They even give the illusion of being pious and humble and austere. But they’re just another way of showing off, making yourselves look important.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

Jesus Christ is the Source of Life and Foundation of our faith. 

God’s Holy Spirit provides the Substance for who we are in Christ.  Substance defined in science is the “particular kinds of matter with uniform properties” in everything.  Substance is the real physical matter of which a person or thing consists and which has a tangible, solid presence.  The substance of our existence in Christ is expressed in our behaviors as we become more and more like Christ.  We’re not in this alone.  We have the power of God’s Holy Spirit, the same power that raised Jesus from death to life! 

Pause to prayerfully ask, “Lord, what am I made of and who is providing the substance of my being?”  Am I trying to live a life of substance without you—relying on my own very limited power?

Paul teaches us today to know God by focusing on His Son, Jesus, who is the Source of eternal Life.  “…Be woven into the tapestry of God’s love, in touch with everything there is to know of God. Then you will have minds confident and at rest, focused on Christ,” the one and only perfect sacrifice for all the sins of the world.  All sins removed. Forever.  God provides salvation for anyone who will take it. God doesn’t require that we know hidden secrets or certain inside information to accept Christ’s message and enjoy eternal life.  “Be still and know that I am God” the Psalmist proclaims.  (Psalm 46:10) 

The focus of our belief: “God brought you alive—right along with Christ! Think of it! All sins forgiven, the slate wiped clean, that old arrest warrant canceled and nailed to Christ’s cross.” 

The focus of our faith: “You received Christ Jesus, the Master; now live him.”  To live Jesus is to be guided by His Holy Spirit who give substance to our faith in Him.  To live Jesus begins with grateful hearts of praise for what He did for us on the cross coupled with minds of humbled reverence for the One who now sits on the throne of God.  All things come under Him who rose again, defeating death, to give us Hope of life forever with Him who believe and call on His Name.   

Jesus is the Source and Substance of Life for all who believe. Believe and be saved from sins.  Believe in the One who knows your Name and loved you before you born. Many distractions surround us, even religious ones or church-centered activities. The center of our faith, however, should always be Jesus Christ.

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Hebrews 11:1, KJV

Lord,

You are the source and substance of our new life being formed by You.  I want to live for you with your power helping me.  I seek a life of substance from the Source of life eternal! I am grateful, oh so very grateful, for the removal of all my sins because of your love for me and others who believe.  Keep us focused on you all day long and into the night as we rely on you hour by hour, day by day until we see you face to face.  You are the Substance of my faith and my Source of Hope.

In Jesus Name, Amen

“I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”—Jesus, John 16:33, NLT

Sometimes the troubles, trials, and sorrows come because of listening to the voices and views of this world, sorting through deceptive, “almost truth” words and actions, and deciding someone other than Jesus is telling us the truth.  With all our beings; we want to know who is telling us the truth.  We have an innate desire to follow what is authentic.  It is usually not our first thought or desire to be distracted, deceived, and led away as a fool to be taken advantage of and stripped of all that God created us to be.  We do not want to lose; we want to gain what is best for us.  We also want to be loved.  We want to belong. But some of us seek to fulfill this longing in all the wrong places as the music plays…” Looking for love in all the wrong places”.

The people of Colossians were impressed with Jesus but to some, He was not the center of their lives.  Paul writes with compassion to lead them back to Jesus who is the only Way, Ultimate Truth, who offers Life eternal. Only Jesus can do that.  Jesus embodies Truth.  Jesus is Truth. 

Eugene Peterson writes;

“Hardly anyone who hears the full story of Jesus and learns the true facts of his life and teaching, crucifixion, and resurrection, walks away with a shrug of the shoulders, dismissing him as unimportant.  People ignorant of the story or misinformed about it, of course, regularly dismiss Him.  But with few exceptions, the others know instinctively that they are dealing with a most remarkable greatness.

But it is quite common for those who consider him truly important to include others who seem to be equally important in his company—Buddha, Moses, Socrates, and Muhammad for a historical start, along with some personal favorites.  For these people, Jesus is important, but not central, his prestige is considerable, but He is not preeminent.

The Christians of Colosse, or at least some of them, seem to have been taking this line.  For them, cosmic forces of one sort or another were getting equal billing with Jesus.  Paul writes to them in an attempt to restore Jesus, the Messiah, to the center of their lives.” –Peterson, Introduction to Colossians, The Message Bible

Colossians 1, The Message

^1-2 I, Paul, have been sent on special assignment by Christ as part of God’s master plan. Together with my friend Timothy, I greet the Christians and stalwart followers of Christ who live in Colosse. May everything good from God our Father be yours!

Working in His Orchard

^3-5 Our prayers for you are always spilling over into thanksgivings. We can’t quit thanking God our Father and Jesus our Messiah for you! We keep getting reports on your steady faith in Christ, our Jesus, and the love you continuously extend to all Christians. The lines of purpose in your lives never grow slack, tightly tied as they are to your future in heaven, kept taut by hope.

^5-8 The Message is as true among you today as when you first heard it. It doesn’t diminish or weaken over time. It’s the same all over the world. The Message bears fruit and gets larger and stronger, just as it has in you. From the very first day you heard and recognized the truth of what God is doing, you’ve been hungry for more. It’s as vigorous in you now as when you learned it from our friend and close associate Epaphras. He is one reliable worker for Christ! I could always depend on him. He’s the one who told us how thoroughly love had been worked into your lives by the Spirit.

^9-12 Be assured that from the first day we heard of you, we haven’t stopped praying for you, asking God to give you wise minds and spirits attuned to his will, and so acquire a thorough understanding of the ways in which God works. We pray that you’ll live well for the Master, making him proud of you as you work hard in his orchard. As you learn more and more how God works, you will learn how to do your work. We pray that you’ll have the strength to stick it out over the long haul—not the grim strength of gritting your teeth but the glory-strength God gives. It is strength that endures the unendurable and spills over into joy, thanking the Father who makes us strong enough to take part in everything bright and beautiful that he has for us.

^13-14 God rescued us from dead-end alleys and dark dungeons. He’s set us up in the kingdom of the Son he loves so much, the Son who got us out of the pit we were in, got rid of the sins we were doomed to keep repeating.

Christ Holds It All Together

^15-18 We look at this Son and see the God who cannot be seen. We look at this Son and see God’s original purpose in everything created. For everything, absolutely everything, above and below, visible and invisible, rank after rank after rank of angels—everything got started in him and finds its purpose in him. He was there before any of it came into existence and holds it all together right up to this moment. And when it comes to the church, he organizes and holds it together, like a head does a body.

^18-20 He was supreme in the beginning and—leading the resurrection parade—he is supreme in the end. From beginning to end he’s there, towering far above everything, everyone. So spacious is he, so expansive, that everything of God finds its proper place in him without crowding. Not only that, but all the broken and dislocated pieces of the universe—people and things, animals and atoms—get properly fixed and fit together in vibrant harmonies, all because of his death, his blood that poured down from the cross.

^21-23 You yourselves are a case study of what he does. At one time you all had your backs turned to God, thinking rebellious thoughts of him, giving him trouble every chance you got. But now, by giving himself completely at the Cross, actually dying for you, Christ brought you over to God’s side and put your lives together, whole and holy in his presence. You don’t walk away from a gift like that! You stay grounded and steady in that bond of trust, constantly tuned in to the Message, careful not to be distracted or diverted. There is no other Message—just this one. Every creature under heaven gets this same Message. I, Paul, am a messenger of this Message.

* * *

^24-25 I want you to know how glad I am that it’s me sitting here in this jail and not you. There’s a lot of suffering to be entered into in this world—the kind of suffering Christ takes on. I welcome the chance to take my share in the church’s part of that suffering. When I became a servant in this church, I experienced this suffering as a sheer gift, God’s way of helping me serve you, laying out the whole truth.

^26-29 This mystery has been kept in the dark for a long time, but now it’s out in the open. God wanted everyone, not just Jews, to know this rich and glorious secret inside and out, regardless of their background, regardless of their religious standing. The mystery in a nutshell is just this: Christ is in you, so therefore you can look forward to sharing in God’s glory. It’s that simple. That is the substance of our Message. We preach Christ, warning people not to add to the Message. We teach in a spirit of profound common sense so that we can bring each person to maturity. To be mature is to be basic. Christ! No more, no less. That’s what I’m working so hard at day after day, year after year, doing my best with the energy God so generously gives me.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

Jesus is the Truth we have been searching for all our lives.

Jesus is the Focus of believers in Him.  He is the only Way to God. He is the Way, Truth and the Hope of eternal Life with God.

Jesus at the Center of believers’ thinking develops the fruits of His character which transforms our behaviors.  Life with Jesus is a growing process, fueled by the power of God’s Holy Spirit supplied daily.   Jesus in us—living in us—is the secret to God bringing out His best in and through us for His glory!

Jesus at the Center is a gift from God who loves us unconditionally and relentlessly.

Jesus at the Center of broken lives “get properly fixed and fit together in vibrant harmonies”!   An intimate growing relationship with Jesus changes everything!

Our response—

“You don’t walk away from a gift like that! You stay grounded and steady in that bond of trust, constantly tuned in to the Message, careful not to be distracted or diverted. There is no other Message—just this one.” –Paul

Lord,

We are grateful that you made a Way for us to reconcile with you.  You spoke, lived and demonstrated Truth by living as Truth.  Be believing You, we receive the gift of eternal Life. Help us to keep it simple and simply believe, trust, and follow what you say.

Thank you, God. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Holy Spirit. 

In Jesus Name, Amen

It is joy unspeakable and full of glory,
Full of glory, full of glory.
It is joy unspeakable and full of glory;
O the half has never yet been told!

(Written by Barney Elliot Warren, 1900)

Joy unspeakable joy
An overflowing well
No tongue can tell
Joy unspeakable joy
It rises in my soul
Never lets me go…

(Written by Chris Tomlin, 2009)

The apostle Paul wrote these words of unspeakable, glorious joy while sitting in a jail cell.  God still equipped and used Paul in his circumstances to declare His glory while sharing the message of salvation.  He fills Paul to overflow status with this unspeakable joy that only comes from God.  Paul shares what he is learning from God as he praises God!  Paul also teaches us how to turn worry into prayers, a healthier way to live, along  with how to overcome our overthinking with Truth when we are challenged with the perplexities of life.

Philippians 4, The Message

My dear, dear friends! I love you so much. I do want the very best for you. You make me feel such joy, fill me with such pride. Don’t waver. Stay on track, steady in God.

Pray About Everything

² I urge Euodia and Syntyche to iron out their differences and make up. God doesn’t want his children holding grudges.

³ And, oh, yes, Syzygus, since you’re right there to help them work things out, do your best with them. These women worked for the Message hand in hand with Clement and me, and with the other veterans—worked as hard as any of us. Remember, their names are also in the Book of Life.

^4-5 Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean, revel in him! Make it as clear as you can to all you meet that you’re on their side, working with them and not against them. Help them see that the Master is about to arrive. He could show up any minute!

^6-7 Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.

^8-9 Summing it all up, friends, I’d say you’ll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. Do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies.

Content Whatever the Circumstances

^10-14 I’m glad in God, far happier than you would ever guess—happy that you’re again showing such strong concern for me. Not that you ever quit praying and thinking about me. You just had no chance to show it. Actually, I don’t have a sense of needing anything personally. I’ve learned by now to be quite content whatever my circumstances. I’m just as happy with little as with much, with much as with little. I’ve found the recipe for being happy whether full or hungry, hands full or hands empty. Whatever I have, wherever I am, I can make it through anything in the One who makes me who I am. I don’t mean that your help didn’t mean a lot to me—it did. It was a beautiful thing that you came alongside me in my troubles.

^15-17 You Philippians well know, and you can be sure I’ll never forget it, that when I first left Macedonia province, venturing out with the Message, not one church helped out in the give-and-take of this work except you. You were the only one. Even while I was in Thessalonica, you helped out—and not only once, but twice. Not that I’m looking for handouts, but I do want you to experience the blessing that issues from generosity.

^18-20 And now I have it all—and keep getting more! The gifts you sent with Epaphroditus were more than enough, like a sweet-smelling sacrifice roasting on the altar, filling the air with fragrance, pleasing God to no end. You can be sure that God will take care of everything you need, his generosity exceeding even yours in the glory that pours from Jesus. Our God and Father abounds in glory that just pours out into eternity. Yes.

^21-22 Give our regards to every follower of Jesus you meet. Our friends here say hello. All the Christians here, especially the believers who work in the palace of Caesar, want to be remembered to you.

²³ Receive and experience the amazing grace of the Master, Jesus Christ, deep, deep within yourselves.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

The apostles learned first hand from Jesus and passed this unspeakable joy on to us!

“Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy,” –Peter, 1 Peter 1:8, NIV

“…Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” –Jesus, John 20:29, NIV

“I’ve learned by now to be quite content whatever my circumstances. I’m just as happy with little as with much, with much as with little. I’ve found the recipe for being happy whether full or hungry, hands full or hands empty. Whatever I have, wherever I am, I can make it through anything in the One who makes me who I am.” –Paul, Philippians 4, MSG 

We learn that saving faith in Christ brings with it a joy so great that it can’t be expressed. Words can’t contain or explain it. It’s a joy full of glory, reflecting our future with Christ in the present moment in front of us. We learn that this uncommon, not of this world, joy is a gift given to help us in and through the troubles of this world.  The choice to rejoice in God, even the middle of our trials, is an act of faith.  Joy and peace come because of our belief and trust in Jesus.

Things are not always rosy in our household, either.  We are struggling to settle an accident claim that could cost all we have.  You might be struggling with severe illness, a relationship that causes much pain, or a financial struggle that worries you at present.  Things and people of this world can jolt our joy meters for sure!  How can we retain and sustain this uncommon joy?

Studying Paul’s message of joy and contentment in all circumstances is appropriate for all, on any given day, but especially today—at this very moment!  All of us will experience times of worry, fear of the unknown, wondering what will happen next.  All of us will have troubles in this world.  We must focus on Jesus and keep Him in the center of our thoughts. 

“I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”—Jesus, John 16:33

Our Overcoming-Jesus will make overcomers of us!  It is our trust in Him that overcomes our fears.  It is our hope and faith in Jesus that turns dread and sorrow into this unspeakable, unexplainable joy right in the middle of troubles.  Jesus offers a bonus called peace—a gift given to those with unwavering belief in Him. 

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”—Jesus, John 14:27

Pause to pray—Let us reshape our worries into prayers of praise, believing in the promise that God knows and is with us through it all. Rejoice in God’s goodness.  He didn’t bring us this far to leave us.  Life may not turn out the way we perceive; but we can be certain that God always knows exactly what we need when we need it most—mostly Him.

Lord,

Here I am seeking to be filled with your peace and joy again.  You are the Way, Truth, and Life.  You are the One and Only who saves us and sets us free to love like you love us.  You are the overcomer of evil and evil’s schemes to rob our joy and peace in you.  May your glory, your unspeakable joy in me be my testimony all day long and forever no matter what circumstances try to dictate in my life.  Transform my thought life to match your desires for me.  “Whatever I have, wherever I am, I can make it through anything in the One who makes me who I am.”  I agree with Paul.  You are the joy and strength of my life!

In Jesus Name, For Your Glory, Amen.  Yes! 

Your name, Your name
Is victory.
All praise, will rise
To Christ, our king

By Your spirit I will rise
From the ashes of defeat
The resurrected King, is resurrecting me
In Your name I come alive
To declare Your victory
The resurrected King, is resurrecting me…

(Resurrecting, Elevation Worship, Songwriters: Christopher Brown / Mack Brock / Matthews Thabo Ntele / Steven Furtick / Wade Joye)

“I want to know Christ!” Paul adamantly proclaims.  As we get to know Christ as well as Paul knows Christ; we too will discover the insignificance of worldly treasures and vain pursuit of satisfying our hungry souls with shiny things that distract us along with destructive relationships with people who hate and mock Christ.  We also soon discover that everyone who goes to church every time the doors are open do not necessarily know Christ, either.  They know church. They know the written policies and unwritten norms, but they may not really know Jesus.  Many know of Jesus, are impressed with his teachings, but do not follow Him as Lord of their daily, go to work and come home lives.  Follow those in the know!

Paul set us straight about what it means to really know Jesus as Savior and how to follow Him as Lord of our lives. Our true, main goal should be to know Christ and his power available to us to help us live each day in ways that glorify God, the Father—just like Jesus did when He came to earth and moved into the neighborhood of humanity.  Jesus truly is who He said He was, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”—Jesus, John 14:6

Going to church and being friendly to all the people who come with us does not necessarily mean that we know Christ personally.  Leading a work team, teaching a Sunday School class, or singing in the choir does not mean we know Jesus personally.  We can do many good things, obey all the rules, and give to the poor in fact there are many social clubs that do those things, too!  The difference Maker is Jesus as Lord!

Philippians 3, The Message

To Know Him Personally

And that’s about it, friends. Be glad in God!

I don’t mind repeating what I have written in earlier letters, and I hope you don’t mind hearing it again. Better safe than sorry—so here goes.

^2-6 Steer clear of the barking dogs, those religious busybodies, all bark and no bite. All they’re interested in is appearances—knife-happy circumcisers, I call them. The real believers are the ones the Spirit of God leads to work away at this ministry, filling the air with Christ’s praise as we do it. We couldn’t carry this off by our own efforts, and we know it—even though we can list what many might think are impressive credentials. You know my pedigree: a legitimate birth, circumcised on the eighth day; an Israelite from the elite tribe of Benjamin; a strict and devout adherent to God’s law; a fiery defender of the purity of my religion, even to the point of persecuting the church; a meticulous observer of everything set down in God’s law Book.

^7-9 The very credentials these people are waving around as something special, I’m tearing up and throwing out with the trash—along with everything else I used to take credit for. And why? Because of Christ. Yes, all the things I once thought were so important are gone from my life. Compared to the high privilege of knowing Christ Jesus as my Master, firsthand, everything I once thought I had going for me is insignificant—dog dung. I’ve dumped it all in the trash so that I could embrace Christ and be embraced by him. I didn’t want some petty, inferior brand of righteousness that comes from keeping a list of rules when I could get the robust kind that comes from trusting Christ—God’s righteousness.

^10-11 I gave up all that inferior stuff so I could know Christ personally, experience his resurrection power, be a partner in his suffering, and go all the way with him to death itself. If there was any way to get in on the resurrection from the dead, I wanted to do it.

Focused on the Goal

^12-14 I’m not saying that I have this all together, that I have it made. But I am well on my way, reaching out for Christ, who has so wondrously reached out for me. Friends, don’t get me wrong: By no means do I count myself an expert in all of this, but I’ve got my eye on the goal, where God is beckoning us onward—to Jesus. I’m off and running, and I’m not turning back.

^15-16 So let’s keep focused on that goal, those of us who want everything God has for us. If any of you have something else in mind, something less than total commitment, God will clear your blurred vision—you’ll see it yet! Now that we’re on the right track, let’s stay on it.

^17-19 Stick with me, friends. Keep track of those you see running this same course, headed for this same goal. There are many out there taking other paths, choosing other goals, and trying to get you to go along with them. I’ve warned you of them many times; sadly, I’m having to do it again. All they want is easy street. They hate Christ’s Cross. But easy street is a dead-end street. Those who live there make their bellies their gods; belches are their praise; all they can think of is their appetites.

^20-21 But there’s far more to life for us. We’re citizens of high heaven! We’re waiting the arrival of the Savior, the Master, Jesus Christ, who will transform our earthy bodies into glorious bodies like his own. He’ll make us beautiful and whole with the same powerful skill by which he is putting everything as it should be, under and around him.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

The question Paul puts before us is this; “Do I want to truly, intimately, know Christ as Lord?”  Am I willing to put Him first, putting my own interest aside, discarding all the stuff I cling to in this world, so that I can really and truly get to know Jesus Christ personally?

Signs of goodness, even for the good of others, and make us feel good for doing them, do not guarantee that we have asked for repentance of our sins with a dedicated, committed desire to know Christ for who He is in us personally, “experience his resurrection power, be a partner in his suffering, and go all the way with him to death itself.” 

Do we want to know Christ beyond what we first knew we first we heard of Him?

To know God is to trust Jesus with our very lives—all of it! 

Here’s how:

“So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.” Romans 12:1-2, MSG

Lord,

Here I am, all of me wanting all of you.  Cleanse my heart of all sin.  Help me remove all that gets in the way of seeing you clearly.  Renew my mind and dump all the garbage that distracts and deceives my mind.  Refresh the hard drive of my being with your tender, new, cleansing mercies.  Restore the default of your love, joy, and peace of knowing you personally and intimately.  I am yours and you are mind.  Thank you for loving so deeply and so faithfully.  Help us to love like you love us—without conditions.

In Jesus Name, Amen

Status is important to humans.  We want to know where we fit in any given social or professional situation.  If we are not satisfied with our rank and status, then we will instinctively work hard to gain status in our community for the purpose raising our rank.  That’s what status is and what it means to obtain it.  Status is defined as a social or professional position, condition, or standing to which varying degrees of responsibility, privilege, and esteem are attached.  Status is the relative position or standing of a person or thing. 

Given this information, what is your current status? What is mine? How much of our time is spent on clinging to our status with hopes of raising our rank in our people groups or in society at large?  What happens when we give our hearts, minds, and souls to Christ?  How does that affect our human status seeking behaviors?

Paul has the answer with an example!

Philippians 2, The Message

He Took on the Status of a Slave

2 ^1-4 If you’ve gotten anything at all out of following Christ, if his love has made any difference in your life, if being in a community of the Spirit means anything to you, if you have a heart, if you care—then do me a favor: Agree with each other, love each other, be deep-spirited friends. Don’t push your way to the front; don’t sweet-talk your way to the top. Put yourself aside, and help others get ahead. Don’t be obsessed with getting your own advantage. Forget yourselves long enough to lend a helping hand.

^5-8 Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself. He had equal status with God but didn’t think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what. Not at all. When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human! Having become human, he stayed human. It was an incredibly humbling process. He didn’t claim special privileges. Instead, he lived a selfless, obedient life and then died a selfless, obedient death—and the worst kind of death at that—a crucifixion.

^9-11 Because of that obedience, God lifted him high and honored him far beyond anyone or anything, ever, so that all created beings in heaven and on earth—even those long ago dead and buried—will bow in worship before this Jesus Christ, and call out in praise that he is the Master of all, to the glorious honor of God the Father.

Rejoicing Together

^12-13 What I’m getting at, friends, is that you should simply keep on doing what you’ve done from the beginning. When I was living among you, you lived in responsive obedience. Now that I’m separated from you, keep it up. Better yet, redouble your efforts. Be energetic in your life of salvation, reverent and sensitive before God. That energy is God’s energy, an energy deep within you, God himself willing and working at what will give him the most pleasure.

^14-16 Do everything readily and cheerfully—no bickering, no second-guessing allowed! Go out into the world uncorrupted, a breath of fresh air in this squalid and polluted society. Provide people with a glimpse of good living and of the living God. Carry the light-giving Message into the night so I’ll have good cause to be proud of you on the day that Christ returns. You’ll be living proof that I didn’t go to all this work for nothing.

^17-18 Even if I am executed here and now, I’ll rejoice in being an element in the offering of your faith that you make on Christ’s altar, a part of your rejoicing. But turnabout’s fair play—you must join me in my rejoicing. Whatever you do, don’t feel sorry for me.

^19-24 I plan (according to Jesus’ plan) to send Timothy to you very soon so he can bring back all the news of you he can gather. Oh, how that will do my heart good! I have no one quite like Timothy. He is loyal, and genuinely concerned for you. Most people around here are looking out for themselves, with little concern for the things of Jesus. But you know yourselves that Timothy’s the real thing. He’s been a devoted son to me as together we’ve delivered the Message. As soon as I see how things are going to fall out for me here, I plan to send him off. And then I’m hoping and praying to be right on his heels.

^25-27 But for right now, I’m dispatching Epaphroditus, my good friend and companion in my work. You sent him to help me out; now I’m sending him to help you out. He has been wanting in the worst way to get back with you. Especially since recovering from the illness you heard about, he’s been wanting to get back and reassure you that he is just fine. He nearly died, as you know, but God had mercy on him. And not only on him—he had mercy on me, too. His death would have been one huge grief piled on top of all the others.

^28-30 So you can see why I’m so delighted to send him on to you. When you see him again, strong and strapping, how you’ll rejoice and how relieved I’ll be. Give him a grand welcome, a joyful embrace! People like him deserve the best you can give. Remember the ministry to me that you started but weren’t able to complete? Well, in the process of finishing up that work, he put his life on the line and nearly died doing it.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

If we love Jesus and want to be like Jesus more and more each day, we must lay the pursuit of our own personal status and the innate desire for prestige in this world.  “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness…” says Jesus, Matthew 6:33 “…and all these things will be given to you as well.”  What will be given?  All that God has—even His One and Only Son! 

The status we seek most demands that we wear the right clothes, drive vehicles that show high prestige, while we climb over everyone on the ladders of success in our profession.  We must be seen eating at only the finest restaurants.  Jesus addresses the aggressive stress this causes as we live a self-seeking pursuit of status, value, worth, and rank in this world.

“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.” –Jesus, Matthew 6:28-32

God knows we need clothes; God was Adam and Eve’s first clothing designers as I recall! (Genesis 3) God knows we need food to eat and provides ways to for us to grow it or buy what we need from each other.  In our country, we have more than enough, with enough to share! Jesus addresses our generosity as well!

Above all, Jesus sets the supreme example concerning status.  Paul explains and clearly lays in on the line for us:

“He had equal status with God but didn’t think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what. Not at all. When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human! Having become human, he stayed human. It was an incredibly humbling process. He didn’t claim special privileges. Instead, he lived a selfless, obedient life and then died a selfless, obedient death—and the worst kind of death at that—a crucifixion.”

Because of His great love for us, Jesus willingly and obediently laid down his life for ours.  Let the humbling status that Jesus chose so that we could be redeemed and set free, sink into our being this morning.

What is our current status?  Pause to prayerfully consider what we seek most.  Are we living in “responsive obedience” to God/Jesus/Holy Spirit?

Lord,

May what you did for us permeate our hearts, minds, and souls all day long and into the night.  Cleanse our hearts, renew our minds, refresh our souls with your new mercies for today, and restore the joy and peace of your salvation always at work with us to transform our thinking and ultimate behaviors.  May your Holy Spirit fill us and guide us with all the status that a believer needs—all of You in all of us/me.

In Jesus Name, For Your Glory, Amen

Do we believe what God says to be really real?  Do we believe that God did indeed sent a part of Himself, His One and Only Son, Jesus, to earth to demonstrate His love for us as a living sacrifice for our sins?  The depth and reality of our inner belief with be reflected in our behaviors—especially when pushed into a corner by circumstances that challenge our entire being. 

The more we get to know God by reading His Word while listening to His Holy Spirit speak to us in the stillness of our desire to know; we can only begin to scratch the surface of the way God thinks and why He does what He does for and in us.  Isaiah, the prophet, is told by God that His thoughts will always surpass the thoughts of mankind in this world!

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
    neither are your ways my ways,”
declares the Lord.

“As the heavens are higher than the earth,
    so are my ways higher than your ways
    and my thoughts than your thoughts”. –Isaiah 55:8-9

David wrote songs from his heart to God’s ears about God’s character.  David’s psalms declare the merciful actions of the God he loves.  David declares God’s greatness and power in humbled praise.  His songs help us understand more about God—who is unfailing and unchanging in His love for us!

Out of the depths I cry to you, Lord; Lord, hear my voice.
Let your ears be attentive to my cry for mercy.

If you, Lord, kept a record of sins, Lord, who could stand?
But with you there is forgiveness, so that we can, with reverence, serve you.

I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope.
I wait for the Lord, more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning.

Israel, put your hope in the Lord, for with the Lord is unfailing love and with him is full redemption.
He himself will redeem Israel from all their sins.” Psalm 130

Now Paul, centuries later, is sitting in a prison cell for preaching the glorious Good News of salvation made possible by the sacrifice Jesus. In Paul’s current situation he learns even more about God.  We hear in his writings, that Paul is becoming certain of God whose thoughts are so opposite than mankind’s that God can make a bad situation work for His glory and our good through those who serve Him!  Paul is gaining even more God-confidence as he watches God at work from his jail cell! 

God’s upside-down, right-side up Kingdom thinking easily turns a bad circumstance in a beautiful opportunity to proclaim that Jesus is alive and well and that all our sins have been paid in full!  Yes, that’s who God is and how He works!  God rises above all, is in all, and loves us through it all.  Man plans; but God decides.  And where God guides; He provides.  Here is report from God’s eye-witness with proof and evidence—

Philippians 1:12-30, The Message

They Can’t Imprison the Message

^12-14 I want to report to you, friends, that my imprisonment here has had the opposite of its intended effect. Instead of being squelched, the Message has actually prospered. All the soldiers here, and everyone else, too, found out that I’m in jail because of this Messiah. That piqued their curiosity, and now they’ve learned all about him. Not only that, but most of the followers of Jesus here have become far more sure of themselves in the faith than ever, speaking out fearlessly about God, about the Messiah.

^15-17 It’s true that some here preach Christ because with me out of the way, they think they’ll step right into the spotlight. But the others do it with the best heart in the world. One group is motivated by pure love, knowing that I am here defending the Message, wanting to help. The others, now that I’m out of the picture, are merely greedy, hoping to get something out of it for themselves. Their motives are bad. They see me as their competition, and so the worse it goes for me, the better—they think—for them.

^18-21 So how am I to respond? I’ve decided that I really don’t care about their motives, whether mixed, bad, or indifferent. Every time one of them opens his mouth, Christ is proclaimed, so I just cheer them on!

And I’m going to keep that celebration going because I know how it’s going to turn out. Through your faithful prayers and the generous response of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, everything he wants to do in and through me will be done. I can hardly wait to continue on my course. I don’t expect to be embarrassed in the least. On the contrary, everything happening to me in this jail only serves to make Christ more accurately known, regardless of whether I live or die. They didn’t shut me up; they gave me a platform! Alive, I’m Christ’s messenger; dead, I’m his prize. Life versus even more life! I can’t lose.

^22-26 As long as I’m alive in this body, there is good work for me to do. If I had to choose right now, I hardly know which I’d choose. Hard choice! The desire to break camp here and be with Christ is powerful. Some days I can think of nothing better. But most days, because of what you are going through, I am sure that it’s better for me to stick it out here. So I plan to be around awhile, companion to you as your growth and joy in this life of trusting God continues. You can start looking forward to a great reunion when I come visit you again. We’ll be praising Christ, enjoying each other.

^27-30 Meanwhile, live in such a way that you are a credit to the Message of Christ. Let nothing in your conduct hang on whether I come or not. Your conduct must be the same whether I show up to see things for myself or hear of it from a distance. Stand united, singular in vision, contending for people’s trust in the Message, the good news, not flinching or dodging in the slightest before the opposition. Your courage and unity will show them what they’re up against: defeat for them, victory for you—and both because of God. There’s far more to this life than trusting in Christ. There’s also suffering for him. And the suffering is as much a gift as the trusting. You’re involved in the same kind of struggle you saw me go through, on which you are now getting an updated report in this letter.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

There’s far more than trusting in Christ!  There will be times of trouble and suffering as we follow Christ!  Not to worry, embrace those times because God is still work.  Our best lessons are learned in the challenges that get our attention.  We grow stronger in our resolve to follow the One and Only who willing died for our sins and rose again to give us hope for eternal life! 

^“I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”           —Jesus, John 16:33, NLT

We live to please God while delivering the message of Jesus Christ with confidence that comes from knowing and believing in Jesus.  We daily offer ourselves to Him so that His Holy Spirit can go to work to help us become more and more in every way like Jesus!

We stand firm because Jesus willingly hung firmly on a cross for us.  Jesus, beaten beyond recognition, could have called ten thousand angels to rescue Him in power—but He did not—love held Him there.

So, do we really believe God or not?  What is imprisoning our witness to tell?

Lord,

I believe.  I believe in Your Word that reports some of the ways you think with how you respond to mankind with a love that is beyond this world’s thinking.  The more we live in this world that lives the opposite the more we see the difference of Kingdom thinking and living. There is a difference—a stark, definite difference.  Help us to know the difference by knowing you more and more.

In Jesus Name, Amen

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” –Paul, Romans 8:28, NIV 

“Go with me back in history a couple of thousand years. Let’s go to the city of Rome. The thrilling metropolis of gladiators, chariots, and empires. But don’t stop at the coliseum or palace. Go rather to a drab little room, surrounded by high walls. Let’s imagine that we can peek into the room and look. Inside we see a man seated on the floor. He’s an older fellow, shoulders stooped and balding. Chains are on his hands and feet. And chained to him is a guard from the Roman army.

It is the apostle Paul. The apostle who has traveled all over the world. The apostle who has liberated people in every port. The apostle who was bound only by the will of God is now in chains—stuck in a dingy house—attached to a Roman officer.

Here is a fellow who has every reason to be in a slump!

He is restricted by walls. He is afflicted by friends. He is conflicted by danger.

He is writing a letter. No doubt it is a complaint letter to God. No doubt it is a list of grievances. No doubt he is writing the New Testament version of Lamentations. He has every reason to be bitter and complain. But he doesn’t. Instead, he writes a letter that two thousand years later is still known as the treatise on joy.” –Max Lucado, Encouraging Word Bible

This is a letter of joy and rejoicing through all circumstances of life.  Jesus told his followers before leaving earth to go back home; “in this world you will have troubles, but relax, I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33) We must ask ourselves;

Do we truly believe in Jesus as the overcomer of all that is here on earth?  Paul did.

Philippians is my favorite book of encouragement.  I have used the words of Paul over the years, numerous times, to encourage others as they live for Jesus.  “Every time I think of you, I give thanks for you…”  No matter what Paul is going through while sitting in jail, he teaches us to be like Christ, who thought of others, putting aside His own interests, giving His life for ours.  Jesus is the Source of our joy!  Paul thanks believing friends who also decidedly follow Jesus and receive His joy in the work.  Paul is a committed servant of Jesus Christ.  He rejoices when believing friends also serve Jesus by telling the Message of redemptive salvation for all.

Dear brothers and sisters all over the world, I thank God for you right now! 

For you who read this daily and receive the peace that God gives to us; I thank you God for you!

For some of you who pop in once a while seeking encouragement; I thank God for you! 

For some who have read God’s Word with me over the years and passed it on to others; my heart is filled with joy! 

For you who have given your whole being to Jesus as Lord and live to serve Him; I rejoice with you! 

Every time I think of you, those I have met face to face and many I have not; I thank God for you.  I pray for and with you.  Pray for me as I continue to write words of joy and encouragement by the guidance of His Holy Spirit.  Pray, too that others will come to know and follow Jesus.  It is with a glad heart that these “Daily Manna” messages that proclaim Jesus’ salvation for all are written. 

Brothers and sisters, I thank God for you and pray that God who began this work in us would help us to keep at it until that glorious Day when Christ returns to take us home for eternity!

Philippians 1, The Message

^1-2 Paul and Timothy, both of us committed servants of Christ Jesus, write this letter to all the followers of Jesus in Philippi, pastors and ministers included. We greet you with the grace and peace that comes from God our Father and our Master, Jesus Christ.

A Love That Will Grow

^3-6 Every time you cross my mind, I break out in exclamations of thanks to God. Each exclamation is a trigger to prayer. I find myself praying for you with a glad heart. I am so pleased that you have continued on in this with us, believing and proclaiming God’s Message, from the day you heard it right up to the present. There has never been the slightest doubt in my mind that the God who started this great work in you would keep at it and bring it to a flourishing finish on the very day Christ Jesus appears.

^7-8 It’s not at all fanciful for me to think this way about you. My prayers and hopes have deep roots in reality. You have, after all, stuck with me all the way from the time I was thrown in jail, put on trial, and came out of it in one piece. All along you have experienced with me the most generous help from God. He knows how much I love and miss you these days. Sometimes I think I feel as strongly about you as Christ does!

^9-11 So this is my prayer: that your love will flourish and that you will not only love much but well. Learn to love appropriately. You need to use your head and test your feelings so that your love is sincere and intelligent, not sentimental gush. Live a lover’s life, circumspect and exemplary, a life Jesus will be proud of: bountiful in fruits from the soul, making Jesus Christ attractive to all, getting everyone involved in the glory and praise of God.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

Pray with and for each other as God’s way of loving Him and each other!

Pray for all who God brings to our minds. God knows who could use the encouragement of knowing someone is praying for them.

Pray with joy and thanksgiving on our hearts.  Rejoice in the honored privilege to boldly come to the throne of God who hears and answers with compassion and knowing what is best for us.  Thank God for listening to our hearts as well as our words.

Pray in all the details of life for God delights in us who pray believing.

“The Lord your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves.
He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you,
    but will rejoice over you with singing.” Zephania 3:17, NIV

“The LORD directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives. Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the LORD holds them by the hand.” Psalms 37:23-25 NLT

Paul relentlessly and continually pointed to Jesus as his strength and his protector. He told the church in Philippi that they must trust God at all times, even when things seemed difficult.  When we truly rejoice in God, we can find peace in the middles of our storms, knowing that God is sovereign, most holy, and is always with us through it all. 

“And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” –Jesus, Matthew 28:20

Lord,

Thank you for all who are coming to you this morning with praise on our lips.  I will rejoice in this day you have made.  And again, I say rejoice.  I am glad for your Presence in our lives.  I am grateful for your guidance.  Cleanse our hearts, renew our minds, and continually restore the joy of your salvation at work within us.

In Jesus Name, Amen

FUN FACT:

The Vulcan “salute” was devised by Leonard Nimoy, who portrayed the half Vulcan character Mr. Spock on the original Star Trek television series. Nimoy said in that interview that he “decided that the Vulcans were a “hand-oriented” people”.  In his 1975 autobiography I Am Not Spock, Nimoy, who was Jewish, wrote that he based it on the Priestly Blessing performed by Jewish Kohanim with both hands, thumb to thumb in this same position, representing the Hebrew letter Shin (ש in Square Script, or Paleo Hebrew 𐤔‎), which has three upward strokes similar to the position of the thumb and fingers in the gesture. The letter Shin here stands for El Shaddai, meaning “Almighty (God)”, as well as for Shekhinah and Shalom. Nimoy wrote that when he was a child, his grandfather took him to an Orthodox synagogue, where he saw the blessing performed and was impressed by it.

Paul also takes us back to what the Jews then should know well—the original Ten Commandments given to Moses by God.  He reminds his readers that one particular commandment comes with a promise— “so that you will live well and have a long life.”  In other words, “live long and prosper” by honoring your father and mother!

To honor someone generates from our deep love for them.  Respect for who they are follows our love and grows an admiration for who they are becoming to us and to others.  We regard those we honor as important to our lives, placing great value on the ways they contribute to our wellbeing.

God gives us the commanding order to honor the ones who gave us life on this earth.  We are to hold our parents in high esteem “so we live long and proper.” Life is much harder and heartbreaking when parents and children frustrate each other in ways that destroy loving relationships that God wants us to have and to hold. 

Paul will close his letter with how to resist evil by knowing the Enemy exists to destroy our relationship with God. Know the attacks will come and be prepared. Know the weak spots of our Enemy—he knows ours!  What Satan hates most are believer in Jesus, crying out in the Name of Jesus.  God answers this prayer with the power to resist evil.  We are promised this power, the same power that raised Jesus from death to life! Tap into it.  Satan cannot handle this power that God have given us full access to in our battle with evil.  We cannot defeat the Enemy of God by ourselves or by sheer will power—only in the Name of Jesus who is our Victor over the Enemy.

Believers who trust in God as our Source of strength with unlimited Power are overcomers with Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord!

Ephesians 6, The Message

^1-3 Children, do what your parents tell you. This is only right. “Honor your father and mother” is the first commandment that has a promise attached to it, namely, “so you will live well and have a long life.”

⁴ Fathers, don’t frustrate your children with no-win scenarios. Take them by the hand and lead them in the way of the Master.

^5-8 Servants, respectfully obey your earthly masters but always with an eye to obeying the real master, Christ. Don’t just do what you have to do to get by, but work heartily, as Christ’s servants doing what God wants you to do. And work with a smile on your face, always keeping in mind that no matter who happens to be giving the orders, you’re really serving God. Good work will get you good pay from the Master, regardless of whether you are slave or free.

⁹ Masters, it’s the same with you. No abuse, please, and no threats. You and your servants are both under the same Master in heaven. He makes no distinction between you and them.

A Fight to the Finish

^10-12 And that about wraps it up. God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no weekend war that we’ll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels.

^13-18 Be prepared. You’re up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it’s all over but the shouting you’ll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You’ll need them throughout your life. God’s Word is an indispensable weapon. In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other’s spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out.

^19-20 And don’t forget to pray for me. Pray that I’ll know what to say and have the courage to say it at the right time, telling the mystery to one and all, the Message that I, jailbird preacher that I am, am responsible for getting out.

^21-22 Tychicus, my good friend here, will tell you what I’m doing and how things are going with me. He is certainly a dependable servant of the Master! I’ve sent him not only to tell you about us but to cheer you on in your faith.

^23-24 Good-bye, friends. Love mixed with faith be yours from God the Father and from the Master, Jesus Christ. Pure grace and nothing but grace be with all who love our Master, Jesus Christ.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

We respond with love that gives honor to our parents, no matter who they are or what they have done, we honor and give respect to those who gave us birth.  As children our command is to love, honor, and respect our parents. As parents we lead our children with love to the Father God who so loved us He sent His Son to save us.  To honor is hold each other in high esteem with value for their existence.

God, our Father, demonstrates this holy relationship to us through Jesus, His Son.  If we need to know how to honor our parents, look to Jesus who honored His Father in Heaven consistently with high esteem and praise!  Look to Jesus with how to treat each other so all will go well with parents, children, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, grandparents, friends and even our enemies!  Be led in all relationships by His love in us.  Look to Jesus with a desire to love like He loves us and everyone else in the world!

We respond to the Enemy who hates all loving relationships that begin with Jesus at the center, by being prepared for his attacks.  The Enemy has limited power with the same old tools of distraction by shiny objects of self, deception with lies of destruction with efforts to destroy our loving, faithful relationship with God and others. 

Paul reminds us that we are given God’s “weapons” to sustain us in battle and give us the victory over the Enemy of God.  We respond with knowing full well that we will need God’s unlimited strength and power to help us when the attacks on our faith will come.  We must encourage each other in the battle to overcome with Christ! 

Lord,

Thank you for reminding us of the power you offer us in our daily battles with evil. Thank you for “arming” us for the war you have already won!  Thank you for teaching us to not love only each other but to honor the ones who gave us birth with respect for their existence by your command.  May we live long and prosper in your love, mercy, and grace!

In Jesus Name, Amen

When you wake with an idea that will help someone else, God is probably leading you to listen and respond. I have noticed that He will also lead unbelievers to do good to help someone until they come to believe and know that God is good and the One who prompted them!  When we wake up with someone on our mind; God’s Holy Spirit has put that person in your thoughts for a purpose. Maybe they need prayer or a call.  God always speaks with purpose.  God always has a plan with steps to take.  The steps will seem daunting at first.  The direction God presents us might seem unlikely for us given what we currently know about ourselves from our momentary perspective. 

Sometimes what God says seems so weirdly out of our daily routines and character; we wonder if it is God we are hearing!  It is, if it lines up with what Jesus taught us to be and do.  How will we respond?  Do we ask why and not do anything until we He tells us why? Do we question until the opportunity to do what He tells us passes us by?  We can be a stubborn people, right?!

Seriously though, what is our first thought and response?  Will we respond with love or hate, graciousness or sarcasm, gentleness or impatience anger, kindness or meanness?  It probably depends on who’s doing the leading!   

Ephesians 5, The Message

Wake Up from Your Sleep

^1-2 Watch what God does, and then you do it, like children who learn proper behavior from their parents. Mostly what God does is love you. Keep company with him and learn a life of love. Observe how Christ loved us. His love was not cautious but extravagant. He didn’t love in order to get something from us but to give everything of himself to us. Love like that.

^3-4 Don’t allow love to turn into lust, setting off a downhill slide into sexual promiscuity, filthy practices, or bullying greed. Though some tongues just love the taste of gossip, those who follow Jesus have better uses for language than that. Don’t talk dirty or silly. That kind of talk doesn’t fit our style. Thanksgiving is our dialect.

⁵ You can be sure that using people or religion or things just for what you can get out of them—the usual variations on idolatry—will get you nowhere, and certainly nowhere near the kingdom of Christ, the kingdom of God.

^6-7 Don’t let yourselves get taken in by religious smooth talk. God gets furious with people who are full of religious sales talk but want nothing to do with him. Don’t even hang around people like that.

^8-10 You groped your way through that murk once, but no longer. You’re out in the open now. The bright light of Christ makes your way plain. So no more stumbling around. Get on with it! The good, the right, the true—these are the actions appropriate for daylight hours. Figure out what will please Christ, and then do it.

^11-16 Don’t waste your time on useless work, mere busywork, the barren pursuits of darkness. Expose these things for the sham they are. It’s a scandal when people waste their lives on things they must do in the darkness where no one will see. Rip the cover off those frauds and see how attractive they look in the light of Christ.

Wake up from your sleep,
Climb out of your coffins;
Christ will show you the light!

So watch your step. Use your head. Make the most of every chance you get. These are desperate times!

¹⁷ Don’t live carelessly, unthinkingly. Make sure you understand what the Master wants.

^18-20 Don’t drink too much wine. That cheapens your life. Drink the Spirit of God, huge drafts of him. Sing hymns instead of drinking songs! Sing songs from your heart to Christ. Sing praises over everything, any excuse for a song to God the Father in the name of our Master, Jesus Christ.

Relationships

²¹ Out of respect for Christ, be courteously reverent to one another.

^22-24 Wives, understand and support your husbands in ways that show your support for Christ. The husband provides leadership to his wife the way Christ does to his church, not by domineering but by cherishing. So just as the church submits to Christ as he exercises such leadership, wives should likewise submit to their husbands.

^25-28 Husbands, go all out in your love for your wives, exactly as Christ did for the church—a love marked by giving, not getting. Christ’s love makes the church whole. His words evoke her beauty. Everything he does and says is designed to bring the best out of her, dressing her in dazzling white silk, radiant with holiness. And that is how husbands ought to love their wives. They’re really doing themselves a favor—since they’re already “one” in marriage.

^29-33 No one abuses his own body, does he? No, he feeds and pampers it. That’s how Christ treats us, the church, since we are part of his body. And this is why a man leaves father and mother and cherishes his wife. No longer two, they become “one flesh.” This is a huge mystery, and I don’t pretend to understand it all. What is clearest to me is the way Christ treats the church. And this provides a good picture of how each husband is to treat his wife, loving himself in loving her, and how each wife is to honor her husband.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

We are learning that our response to God depends on what or who we allow to monopolize our thoughts and come into our lives to fill our hearts, minds, and souls.  Afterall, our behaviors flow from what it is our hearts, Jesus teaches.

Are we drawing from the His ever flowing well of Living Water that will sustain and nourish us for eternity?  Are we following the Light or groping our own way through the dark jungle of tangling obstructions that form when we go our own way? Are we leaning on the wisdom of God who demonstrated His relentless love in the life of His Son, Jesus who saved us because He loves us no matter what?  

Could it be that we learn how to respond to God and to others by studying how Jesus responded first, then learn to love like that?  I’m pretty sure that is exactly where Paul is headed as he awakens us to love like God loves us—extravagantly, unconditionally, and faithfully.  God pursues us with mercy in His heart. Wake up to the love, mercy, and grace of God!  He is waiting with open arms—look for Him and respond with honor and respect to God and then to each other.  The rest will fall into place when we place our souls in the loving care and nourishing work of our Lord. 

We cannot save ourselves.  We cannot live to be like Jesus without the power of God’s Holy Spirit, the same power that raised Jesus from death to life, to help us.  We’re just not that good. But God?  God is good.  Only God is good.

Lord,

Thank you for teaching, convicting, challenging, and drawing me to be still, know you, learn about you so I can be more like you in every way.  Transform me from the inside out.  My heart, mind, and souls is yours.  I’m yours and you are mine.  Thank you for all that you do, all that you provide, all because of your love.

In Jesus Name, Amen