Joy…That Lasts A Lifetime
This past Sunday we started a new teaching series on the book of Philippians. This book, inspired by the Holy Spirit of God and written by the Apostle Paul is only four chapters long. It is an example of the old saying that dynamite comes in small packages. This is one of my favorite books written by Paul. It is often referred to as The Epistle of Joy for a good reason. It may be the most personal of all Paul’s writings as he reveals his thoughts on living and dying. Inside this little epistle is a guide to building joy into our lives. We will focus on the spiritual disciplines and habits needed to experience the fruit of the Holy Spirit…joy! That will be my focus for the next six to eight weeks. We can learn from Paul how to sing in the cell, how to praise in our self inflicted prisons and how to focus on a God that can touch the world from any place we might find ourselves. This is a letter of thanksgiving and joy. The two are almost always found thriving together. Thankfulness is the soil that allows joy to grow to full maturity.
I encourage you to read and reread Philippians in your quiet time. Come with your cup running over ready to explore the wonderful truths of God’s Word. At least 16 times Paul refers to joy or rejoicing. This little letter is filled to the brim with joy…let’s enjoy it and drink deeply. “Rejoice in the Lord always and again I say rejoice!” Philippians 4:4.
There are several verses in this little book that I encourage you to memorize. I know, that is a hard word for many of us. OK, if you can’t memorize, how about meditate on them. If you will hear the word, read the word and then meditate on the word…you might get a wonderful surprise and find that you can also memorize the word. Try these verses first: 1:6, 1:21, 2:5-11(one of my favorite), 4:4, 4:13 and 4:19. All these and many more are worthy of our efforts to hide them in our hearts.
“I thank my God for you every time I remember you. In all my prayers for you, I always pray with joy…”
See you Sunday, Good Lord willing,
Pastor Tom
