Finding Unity & Joy

Opening

The Brawling Bride

Posted on September 26, 2007.

THE BRAWLING BRIDE INSD43.TXT Rev. J.D. Tompkins

In a parable she entitles “A Brawling Bride,” Karen Mains paints a vivid scene, describing a suspenseful moment in a wedding ceremony. Down front stands the groom in a spotless tuxedo – handsome, smiling, full of anticipation, shoes shined, every hair in place, anxiously awaiting the presence of his bride. All attendants are in place, looking joyful and attractive. The magical moment finally arrives as the pipe organ reaches full crescendo and the stately wedding march begins.

Everyone rises and looks toward the door for their first glimpse of bride. Suddenly there is a horrified gasp. The wedding party is shocked. The groom stares in embarrassed disbelief. Instead of a lovely woman dressed in elegant white, smiling behind a lace veil, the bride is limping down the aisle. Her dress is soiled and torn. Her leg seems twisted. Ugly cuts and bruises cover her bare arms. Her nose is bleeding, one eye is purple and swollen, and her hair is disheveled.

“Does not this handsome groom deserve better than this?” asks the author. And then the clincher “Alas, His bride, THE CHURCH, has been fighting again!”Calling them (and us) “the church”, the Apostle Paul writes to the Ephesians “Christ..loved the church and gave Himself up for her … to make her holy and clean … so that He could give Himself a glorious church without a single spot or wrinkle or any other blemish, being holy and without a single fault (Ephesians 5:25-27) NASB/TLB

Can you imagine what the wedding pictures would look like if Christ claimed His bride, the Church, today. Try to imagine Him standing next to His brawling Bride. It is one thing for us to survive the blows of a world that is hostile to the things of Christ, but to be in disharmony with one another, fighting and arguing amongst ourselves unthinkable. The story is the same whether it is two people within a congregation or two separate congregations in conflict with each other.

Throughout this letter, two themes keep coming up. They are unity and joy.

Paul is beginning to wrap up his letter and we get to the crux of the internal discord at this point and once again Paul addresses the subject of joy. Look with me as we read today’s passage.

Philippians 4:1–9

Philippians 4:1–9 NIV

1 Therefore, my brothers and sisters, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, dear friends! 2 I plead with Euodia and I plead with Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. 3 Yes, and I ask you, my true companion, help these women since they have contended at my side in the cause of the gospel, along with Clement and the rest of my co-workers, whose names are in the book of life. 4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. 8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. 9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

Prayer

Precious Father,

We are quickly wrapping up this series in Philippians. It has been full of so many gems for us during these unusual days we are experiencing. As we begin wrapping it up this week and finishing next week, I pray you will continue to use the things learned here to direct our steps in the days ahead. Once again, we give you permission to reveal in us the things that may be hindering us in our own spiritual walk. Things that may be causing discord or disunity in our life and in our church. We pray you will direct each of us to do what is necessary to move from conflict with others to peace and joy in Your Spirit. In Your blessed and Holy name Jesus we pray. Amen.

Introduction

I suspect we all think about time periodically. When we are young, time seems to travel by so slowly. I remember the longest hours of my day when I was in school were those hours between 1:30 - 3:30 p.m. I was tired of sitting in a classroom and ready to go home, but the minutes would click by so incredibly slow that I would despair I would ever get there. I was not alone. The energy level always went up instantly upon that 3:30 p.m. dismissal bell ringing. Kids could not get out of the classrooms fast enough. The classroom always emptied faster than at any other time of the day.

Then I was a mother with a teenager and all I could do was lament how quickly the time had passed. My cute little boy was now nearly a grown man and I knew it would not be long before he was on his own.

Of course, the shortening of days has advanced even faster with each passing year. At age 58 with my son now 37 years old, it amazes me how fast the years speed by seemingly out of my control.

In Paul’s letter, we see Paul instructing us on time, the past, present and future. We are to look to the future for our hope and goal, not dwelling on the past to the point that it takes our focus off the prize. But we also do not focus so on the future that we are not diligent in the present as our present also effects our future.

Last week we looked at the obstacles to our Christian faith, one of which is our past if we give it power over us. Today, we will look at…

V. Overcoming the Obstacles of Our Faith to find Unity & Joy

in our present moments.

At this point in Paul’s letter, he focuses more on the moment. What we need to do to achieve unity and what we can do to possess the joy that God provides ensuring we reach our goal.

It is important we remember that today does not stand alone --- what happens, the attitudes, the actions, the commitments will all drastically impact our futures!

Paul gives us five directives for laying claim to the present and futures of our lives. We will look at four of these today and the fifth we will look at next week as we complete our study of Philippians.

Paul’s first directive is a continuation of last week’s sermon. He tells the Philippians to...

A. Stand firm Phil 4:1

Philippians 4:1 NIV

1 Therefore, my brothers and sisters, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, dear friends!

What is the way they are to stand firm in? All those things he had just previously told them regarding the need to mature in their faith. The things we spoke of last week.

A Need for Christian Maturity (Philippians 3:12-16)

1. Dissatisfaction with your status quo (vv 12-13a)

2. Devotion to God (13b)

3. Direction (13c)

4. Determination (14)

5. Discipline (15-16)

Paul loves these people and he is pleased at their sincere desire to serve God. Out of all his churches, this one has worked the hardest and been the most faithful. Paul wants to see them excel and succeed in their Christian walk but also knows that the journey is fraught with challenges all along the way.

The idea of standing firm is not new to us. I have taught on it before. We are not to allow people, false doctrines, or circumstances to push us around and cause us to doubt what we have learned. We are to be strong and firm, resolved in God’s word and Spirit. Look with me at just a few of the scriptures pertaining to “standing firm.”

Ephesians 6:11 NIV

11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.

1 Peter 5:9 NIV

9 Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

1 Corinthians 15:58 NIV

58 Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

1 Corinthians 16:13 NIV

13 Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong.

The truth we stand firm in comes from God through prayer and reading of the Word. It should never be based on people or circumstances. People can help us to grow and understand God’s word better at times. But in those cases, we choose wisely who we are listening to and confirm what they are saying through prayer and God’s Word.

Next in Paul’s letter he directs us to…

B. Maintain spiritual unity Phil 4:2-3

Philippians 4:2–3 NIV

2 I plead with Euodia and I plead with Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. 3 Yes, and I ask you, my true companion, help these women since they have contended at my side in the cause of the gospel, along with Clement and the rest of my co-workers, whose names are in the book of life.

From the beginning of this letter we have seen emphasis on this need for unity. It has been a broad subject directed at the whole church, but now it focuses in on two ladies. We are not told what the disagreement is but just that there is a disagreement. I suspect it had to do with how something was to be done as that is a common struggle. Such struggles will never be avoided 100%. We are imperfect beings and we each are different. Different ways of doing things appeal to us based on what works for us and we often forget that not everyone is like us! We have different talents, different experiences, different strengths, and weaknesses. Conflict happens. Just because there is conflict does not mean someone is not a Christian. Look what Paul says about these two women…

“since they have contended by my side in the cause of the gospel…whose names are in the book of life.” (v 3) These women were devout. But something has caused a falling out and they need help to get it back together.

However, no matter how good these women are, this is a serious matter because…

1. Spiritual unity is essential for the work of God to be accomplished in the life of the church. (John 17)

Unity is so important that Jesus prayed for us to have it. Look at John 17:20-23.

John 17:20–23 NIV

20 “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21 that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— 23 I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.

Jesus is not just talking about the disciples here but about all believers that are yet to come.

It is sad to see churches split over inconsequential details. People are just as quick to give up their membership in a church as they are marriage if they do not get their way or they do not like the way the pastor is leading. They seem to think the church has let them down and they start looking for another where they expect things to be different. Conflict happens but when we allow it to win, we all lose, and Satan wins that round.

1 Peter 5:8 NIV

8 Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.

Satan is always ready to exploit times of conflict.

We also need to understand what unity is and what it is not. Sometimes people leave because they have the wrong idea of what unity is.

2. Spiritual unity is not the same thing as total agreement. (Acts 15:36)

Paul understood this. Paul had experienced his share of disagreements. Some ended in a parting of ways for a time. If you do not believe me, check out the story in Acts 15.

Acts 15:36–41 NIV

36 Some time later Paul said to Barnabas, “Let us go back and visit the believers in all the towns where we preached the word of the Lord and see how they are doing.” 37 Barnabas wanted to take John, also called Mark, with them, 38 but Paul did not think it wise to take him, because he had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not continued with them in the work. 39 They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company. Barnabas took Mark and sailed for Cyprus, 40 but Paul chose Silas and left, commended by the believers to the grace of the Lord. 41 He went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.

This was sometime shortly before Paul’s first trip to Philippi. Perhaps Paul is remembering this as he is giving instruction for aid to Euodia and Syntyche. You see, all believers are learners. We all have experiences we learn from and Paul is no different. He is just as human as we are. We use our learning experiences to help others.

Sometimes disagreements help to solidify church doctrine as with Peter’s and Paul’s difference of opinion on circumcision for the Gentile. Peter, like others, originally believed that Gentiles should be circumcised, but after some debate with Paul and others, Peter changed his mind. This is what is meant by iron sharpening iron as found in Proverbs.

Proverbs 27:17 NIV

17 As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.

God knows that there will be times when we disagree and that is why God set up an authority structure. However, that authority structure can only assist us from causing harm when we follow it. And that brings me to our third point.

3. Sometimes unity requires a little aid from a third-party (v 3)

Paul aids in two ways. First, he says…

a. "agree with each other in the Lord"

To do this, we must find God’s priority in it. What is of eternal importance and what is earthly of origin.

For example, if two people are disagreeing on the color of the church carpet (sad to say it happens), this is of earthly origin. It does not matter in the scheme of someone coming to salvation.

However, if two people are fighting over something that has eternal consequence, it is of higher priority. In Acts 15, Paul was concerned that John Mark’s behavior would have a bad influence on those they were trying to save and minister to. He was afraid his negative behavior would hinder the work God had called them to do. This was a matter of eternal consequence.

In the end it worked out for the good. However, at the time, it caused a “sharp disagreement.” In such times, it helps to have a neutral third party that can assist in bringing reconciliation. So, Paul directs Euodia and Syntyche to find their agreement “in the Lord.” In other words, they needed to find God’s perspective. But he does not stop there as he knows that sometimes that instruction is not enough. So he also...

b. Appoints a fellow leader to “help these women.”

This was probably another leader that had worked alongside of them all. He would be someone of authority that the ladies would listen to. However, they will need to be willing to accept this help and to obey the final decision.

We all at times need someone to step in and help us see the right things. It should be someone in authority who has proven themselves true to God’s word and demonstrate by the “Fruits of the Spirit” that they are God’s faithful servant.

Paul then directs them to…

C. Practice Positive virtues Phil 4:4-7

Philippians 4:4–7 NIV

4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

At this point, Paul returns to the subject of “joy” and “rejoicing.” Look at verse 4.

1. "Rejoice in the Lord always, again I say rejoice." (4)

This, “again,” is one of those troubling passages! Why does he say always? Surely, he has made a mistake! When I look at the examples or occasions of rejoicing in Scripture, it is difficult to believe we should rejoice for such circumstances. There are some circumstances you would expect to rejoice, but then the subjects move into rejoicing in times of famine, persecution, imprisonment, poverty, loss of property, and fiery trials. About this time, I bet you are thinking, “are you kidding me!? How can I rejoice in such times?”

However, in scripture there are many stories where folks did just that. Our weekly Bible Study recently wrapped up for the summer. We were looking at the life and times of Joseph. Joseph found himself bound and in chains on two separate occasions and we found him thanking God and rejoicing in how God was providing even during those times.

Joseph trusted and believed that God had a plan and that plan would be revealed in due time. He understood what Paul would share centuries later.

Romans 8:28 NIV

28 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.

Next Paul said…

2. Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. (5)

Gentleness is another one of those words that is misunderstood just as “meek” is misunderstood. Just because you are gentle does not mean you are weak. It does not mean you allow others to push you around. You can be “gentle” and “stand firm” all at the same time.

The word translated “gentle” means “equitable, fair, mild. Gentleness or “gentle spirit” as some translate it is like being patient or moderate. You do not push to get your way. You listen to others and share in gentleness the truth of God.

People who are gentle can have a deep impact on others as their gentleness is appealing to others and not confrontational.

A quote I found online when searching the word “gentleness” and “strength” said the following.

“Gentleness breeds peace, calm, and consistency of character. It is not volatile or abrupt in its response to the world. Gentleness is strength because it remains constant and clear-minded across all manner of situations.”

I feel this says it well.

Then Paul adds “The Lord is near.” This has brought about a lot of debate. Some say Paul is saying “be gentle as the Lord could return at any moment.” Others believe Paul is saying, “be gentle as the Lord is alongside you giving you strength to be so.” It is difficult to know the true meaning. The word translated “near” can be translated both ways. The early Christians did expect Jesus would come within their lifetime. Later they began to understand that was not so. In this instance, all we can do is give it the connotation that makes the most sense to us. My personal view is that the Lord is near giving us the strength to respond as we should. The truth is that either response is true.

Next Paul instructs them…

3. "Do not be anxious about anything." (6)

If our trust is in God, we have no need to be anxious. Either we believe God is in control or we do not. If we do not, why do we say we are “following Him?” How can we expect to please God if we do not trust Him enough to follow His Son whom He sent to lead us?

In the Thompson Chain Reference Concordance, it lists “anxiety” then “forbidden” and a whole list of scriptures follow. God continually told the Children of Israel, “Be strong and courageous, for I am with you.” Jesus taught several times, “Do not worry.” Look at Matthew 6.

Matthew 6:25–26 NIV

25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?

Peter said…

1 Peter 5:7 NIV

7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.

Paul spoke of it at other times to other churches. The directive to “not worry” is not a suggestion, but a command. God, the creator of the whole universe and so much more, is our champion. He loves us and we can trust He will take care of our needs. I have seen this time and again throughout my lifetime. God has provided in immeasurable ways throughout my life.

However, our human nature kicks in. So, what do we do? Paul tells us…

Philippians 4:6 NIV

6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

Let me break this down. First...

a. But in everything

Notice Paul’s emphasis…rejoice always, be not anxious about anything, and in everything pray. Paul is covering every contingency. He then direct us...

b. By prayer…

Look at his instruction on prayer…

By prayer (attitude of worship) and petition (expression of need), with thanksgiving, present your request to God.

Look with me at that a little closer.

i. Prayer

Why do we go to prayer? Because we know God has our best interest at heart and has the power to take care of any need. So, prayer is an act of worship. We come not demanding, but with humble hearts seeking His wisdom, direction, and intervention in our life. So, we come in devotion and adoration acknowledging His worth and our trust. Next we have...

ii. Petition/Supplication

We earnestly share our need or problem. We pour out all our concern to Him. This time may be intense. We can pour out our frustration, our anger, our fear, our struggles and lay our heads in the lap of the Father knowing as Peter reminds us that “He cares for us.” But we do not end there. We then give...

iii. Thanksgiving

We give thanks for the answers. You may wonder how we can give thanks for what has not been done yet, but that is easy. We have no doubt that He will take care of it in the way that is best for us. Daniel was a great man of prayer. When Daniel was thrown in the lion’s den, who was the one awake pacing all night? It was the king, not Daniel. When Ol’ Nebuchadnezzar had Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego thrown in the fire, who was the most distressed? Nebuchadnezzar!

Once we have done all this, Paul gives us this promise.

4. Promise: "And the peace of God which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (7)

Do you feel the impact of those words that lead into the next verses: GOD WILL GUARD YOUR HEARTS AND MINDS IN CHRIST JESUS.

God will guard our hearts and minds if we: rejoice, are gentle, and present our petition to Him. I envision a protective shield (invisible to men, but visible to God, and made up of ATTENDING ANGELS) that covers me when I have entrusted my day to Him.

It reminds me of Psalm 23:4.

Psalm 23:4 NIV

4 Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

After we leave that place of prayer, we have a job to do to maintain the peace God gives us.

D. We Must Guard our Minds (8-9)

Philippians 4:8–9 NIV

8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. 9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

Paul is directing us to...

1. Develop character in our Christian thought life:

When we pour out ourselves in prayer, we empty ourselves of all that is unholy. However, empty vessels leave space that needs filled. So, we must guard what goes into our brains. This is why the Nazarene Church has always been strong against certain behaviors. Some would say we have been legalistic. Some will say we still are. Our manual has changed in several areas, perhaps for the good or maybe the bad. It depends on your view. Personally, I believe it has to do with how you are taught regarding why we take such views.

For example, if I say, “If you drink wine, you are not a Christian.” I am being legalistic. However, if I say, it is recommended that we do not drink wine as it can open our minds to unclean thoughts and actions, I am not being legalistic. I am volunteering an action that can help to guard our thought life and help us be pure before our holy God. (This is just one such example. One that seems to get the most attention).

We need to set standards for ourselves to help protect us from all the impure things going on around us. It all begins in the mind. Look what Paul says to do.

a. "Whatever is. . .think about these things."

He is giving us a guideline to fill our minds with the things that are good to prevent the things that are wrong taking up space there. People used to say, “we cannot stop the birds from landing in our hair, but we can keep them from building a nest there." :-)

So, Paul instructs us to fill our minds with…

b. Acceptable thought patterns: "Whatever is:

i. True - valid, reliable, and honest

ii. Noble - a quality worthy of respect

iii. right - upright or just, conformable to God's standards and worthy of his approval

iv. Pure - emphasizes moral purity and includes the idea of sexual chastity.

v. Lovely - relates to what is pleasing, agreeable, or amiable.

vi. admirable - praiseworthy, attractive, true to the highest standard.

Then Paul changes the sentence structure to a conditional clause forcing us to use our own discernment and to choose what is excellent and praiseworthy! He says,

c. "If anything is . . ."

It comes down to this. We need to be cautious what we spend time reading, watching on television, listening to on the radio. We need to be cautious the things we do for entertainment (dances, bars, casinos, etc…). When we set standards for our lives, we are working to guard our mind from things that are impure and an offense to our holy God and Heavenly Father. If we set these standards down in our manuals, we become legalistic. For this reason, many of the standards we once had have been removed for they were being used to judge others by. However, it is not wrong to set up these kinds of standards for ourselves to protect our minds from all unrighteousness. Then God can “guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”

There is a fun play of words in this passage. In verse 7, Paul says, “the peace of God” and in verse 8 he says, “The God of peace.” Essentially, you can say it this way. If you set your thoughts on the God of peace, the peace of God you will find. We cannot expect to gain the peace of God if we continually fill our minds with the things that are contrary to a holy God and His peace.

Paul then closes his teaching with verse 9. The verses following verse 9 are closing remarks and we will mine them next week as there is a final important lesson found there. But at this point he closes with...

2. Apply what you have learned v 9

Philippians 4:9 NIV

9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

Paul is not teaching to feel good about himself. He is instructing them in the ways needed to obtain God’s unity and peace to benefit them! To strengthen their Christian walk. However, changing behavior is not easy--it seems awkward, and strange. It is easy to think, “oh this is a good lesson for me, but then never carry through and put it into practice.

Jesus knew this. In the scriptures we find several times when Jesus says, “He who has ears, let him hear.”

If we do not put what we have heard into practice, we cannot grow. More than once I have heard pastors say, “All my sacrifices would be worth it if I saw people in my church changing.”

If this church in Philippi wants to find unity, joy, and peace, they must put into practice what Paul is teaching. But before people can put it into practice, they need to think about it and to find a plan. Let me ask you a convicting question. How many times do you leave a church service and think, “oh that was a good message” and then never take time to figure out how to apply it in your life?

The main purpose of a sermon is to help you understand God’s word so you can live it. It gives you areas to think about and ideas of where it may be applied in your life, but ultimately, you are the one that makes use of it or not.

Not only that, but different people can apply lessons learned in different ways in their lives. Each are facing different circumstances or different trials. One person may have cancer while another is struggling with the loss of a spouse. The one with cancer may need to learn to put their trust in God while the widow (widower as the case may be), may need to learn how to find unity with family due to conflicts that arise from the loss. One sermon can speak into many various circumstances in many different ways.

In closing, allow me to share how I feel this passage could fit some of our current situation:

1) Nerves are frayed right now from the isolation. There are a lot of conflicting ideas on how valid this shutdown is. It can quickly become a squabble between two people. When this happens, we need to set our eyes on the eternal. This pandemic has no bearing on whether we go to heaven or hell. So, we need to apologize, and let it go trusting each other to make the decisions that are right for them, not judging each other on who does what.

2) We need to be aware that Satan is always looking to cause friction. When we do get upset with each other, we need to recognize the author of our frustration: Satan. He will use this time to try to destroy the church. The church is not a building but is you and me. So, he will try to shut us down in the community and with each other by casting blame and conflict.

1 Peter 5:8 NIV

8 Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.

3) U.S. Americans are a proud lot. Especially those of us that are Christian. We are proud of the fact that our nation was established on Christian principles. It can be distressing to see the statues being torn down, the history being misquoted and the overall general welfare of all being abolished for a few rabble-rousers. However, we need to remember that the U.S. is where we reside temporarily. Heaven is our home. Even under these circumstances we are commanded not to worry but to place our trust in God with prayers, petitions, and thanksgiving.

4) Do not fill your day with the news! Yes, from time to time you need to update yourself in what is happening but bypass the news and get the facts from the source. In this case, watch for the governor’s information. Listen to what the President says. Do not spend a gob of time listening to commentators. Evaluate things for yourself and then take them to God. Then fill your mind with things worthy of your time. God’s word, doing good deeds for people in need, reading inspirational items.

Once you have identified one or more of the situations in your life that this passage can help you with, decide what you need to do to make a change based on what you feel God is showing you. Then apply it! Practice it! Identify Godly people who seem to be living in God’s peace and let them encourage you!

This passage is packed with awesome lessons of life. Verse 8 is a great verse to memorize or write on a card and put it where it can visually remind you to dwell on the good things. When you feel yourself beginning to worry, or feel discouraged or distressed, read this passage. If you will apply it, you will find the peace of God from the God of peace.

Father,

In many ways, we have lived in such sweet peace in our nation. Yes, we have participated in wars, but usually on distant shores. However, we are under attack on our shores now. It is a different kind of attack. One is viral, one is from an enemy within attacking our national heritage.

Father, teach us how to stand firm with a gentle spirit that will draw others unto You. Help us not to just hear your message, but to apply it to our life. We all have areas where we need to learn and do better. So, help us all identify the things You want us as individuals to learn and prompt us with a plan on how to place it into practice.

We love You Father. We trust You. We praise Your holy name and we thank you now for the days ahead and the work we know we will witness and participate in as Your Spirit works in each of our lives.

In Jesus blessed name we pray, Amen.