“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:4-7).
As I thought about my “New Year’s Sermon”, I could not get Philippians 4 out of my mind and so I have decided to make it the theme for our congregation this year. Throughout the year, we will come back and look at a little more of the passage, but this week I want to focus on just two words.
The first word is “rejoice”. It has become fashionable in our society to be critical. You don’t have to sit very long in a coffee shop before the conversation turns to complaining about something. Maybe that is not unique to us as North Americans. Maybe it is human nature to look at life from the “half empty glass” perspective.
The reality is, though, that while there are times when we face serious problems and concerns, for most of us most of the time most things are mostly good. There are places in the world where just making it through the day is much more of a struggle than we can ever imagine. We have much to rejoice in.
Interestingly, Paul wrote this passage from prison. At the time, he thought he was about to be executed. Apparently, with the right perspective, even difficult times contain blessings if we look for them.
The second word is “gentleness”. Most people already know where they have failed and they likely do not need someone to point it out to them. What they may need, though, is some encouragement, some assistance, some hope or some gentleness. It is easier for me (personally) to be critical, but I know that it is better for everyone (including me) if I can learn to handle things gently. What a great blessing we would be to others if we could consistently handle them with “gentleness”.
One word (Rejoice) reminds us how we ought to think and the other (Gentleness) reminds us how to treat one another. Put them together and I think you have a good start on a year that not only honours God but draws others to him as well.
As I thought about my “New Year’s Sermon”, I could not get Philippians 4 out of my mind and so I have decided to make it the theme for our congregation this year. Throughout the year, we will come back and look at a little more of the passage, but this week I want to focus on just two words.
The first word is “rejoice”. It has become fashionable in our society to be critical. You don’t have to sit very long in a coffee shop before the conversation turns to complaining about something. Maybe that is not unique to us as North Americans. Maybe it is human nature to look at life from the “half empty glass” perspective.
The reality is, though, that while there are times when we face serious problems and concerns, for most of us most of the time most things are mostly good. There are places in the world where just making it through the day is much more of a struggle than we can ever imagine. We have much to rejoice in.
Interestingly, Paul wrote this passage from prison. At the time, he thought he was about to be executed. Apparently, with the right perspective, even difficult times contain blessings if we look for them.
The second word is “gentleness”. Most people already know where they have failed and they likely do not need someone to point it out to them. What they may need, though, is some encouragement, some assistance, some hope or some gentleness. It is easier for me (personally) to be critical, but I know that it is better for everyone (including me) if I can learn to handle things gently. What a great blessing we would be to others if we could consistently handle them with “gentleness”.
One word (Rejoice) reminds us how we ought to think and the other (Gentleness) reminds us how to treat one another. Put them together and I think you have a good start on a year that not only honours God but draws others to him as well.
Comments