Our scripture this morning is Philippians 4:6-9.
Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you.
Paul writes from a prison cell to the church at Philippi with encouragement for their faith. He tells them (and us) to “think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise”, focusing our thoughts on what God has given us and our lives on using our gifts. In this way we can demonstrate God’s love and be more like Jesus.
Being a Christian involves more than just knowing the scriptures and attending worship. Both of these are essential, but Jesus came to show us how to share the joy we find in our relationship with God. The fellowship of believers and sharing our faith completes our spiritual life.
This is what Paul teaches us, saying “keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me”. We are equipped and energized to go in the name of the Lord, ensuring that no one misses hearing the Good News. This is our Great Commission from Jesus and we all work together for God’s kingdom.
Heavenly Father, we are grateful for the gift and example of our Savior. Help us to be the people You created us to be, loving You, loving one another and bringing the Gospel to everyone. Amen.
