Week 20

Rejoice!  That was the command given by the apostle Paul to the Philippians believers.  We have been rejoicing at my house this last weekend.  On Sunday, our oldest child and so far our only daughter, Abigail, turned eight years old and was baptized by her father in the 11 o'clock service.  What a time to rejoice!  All of her grandparents, one great grandmother, an aunt and uncle, and a few cousins have been here to join in on the celebration. While it may have been crowded at times and sometimes hectic, I would not trade any part of the weekend for having them all here to celebrate with her in the greatest decision she will ever make.  She is beginning her new life in Christ, and while my prayers will not stop, the greatest one has surely been answered.  So, I rejoice and give praise to God for calling her and saving her and for the future work I know that He will perform in her.
 One down, three to go!

Philippians 4:6-7
Don't worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.  And the peace of God, which surpasses every thought, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Week 19

First of all, I apologize for not posting last week.  I have no excuse except business and laziness.  This week I want us to begin looking at some verses on joy.  I don't know about you, but sometimes I need a reminder to focus on the joy and not the trials of this life.  Paul instructs the church to rejoice always.  Not just sometimes, ALWAYS.  Let's put this into practice in our lives this week and no matter what comes our way let's decide to rejoice.

Philippians 4:4-5
Rejoice in the Lord always.  I will say it again:  Rejoice!  Let your graciousness be known to everyone.  The Lord is near.

Week 18

This week let's continue with the next few verses of the passage we began last week.  Often we skip over verses 4 and 5 and move directly to verse 6.  But, these verses are here for a purpose.  You know, I have always identified with and felt sorry for Thomas.  He gets such a bad reputation for asking the questions that most of us would like to ask,we are often just too scared.  He doubts, but sometimes I wonder if he, like me, doubts himself more than he doubts his Lord.  Am I the only one who begins to question things when they seemingly do not go according to plan?  It is not that I always question God's love or His sovereignty, sometimes I just question my own understanding.  Did I misinterpret something?  Maybe that was not what I was supposed to do?  Is this what God wants me to do or what I want to do?  Did I hear that correctly?  You get the point.  So think of Thomas, he just wanted to make sure that he understood what Jesus was saying.  He wanted to be certain that he knew where Jesus was going and how to follow Him there.  Give Thomas a break and try to relate to him, maybe he, like us, just wanted to make sure that he was understanding everything that Jesus was telling him so that he could follow Him completely. 

John 14:4-6
"And you know the way where I am going."  Thomas said to Him, "Lord, we do not know where You are going, how do we know the way?  Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through me."