Journey Through Pilippians

In one of my Bible studies, I was encouraged to read Philippians. Although I have read Philippians many times before, I sat down and read it again. I was amazed at not only what God opened my eyes to see, but also what was reinforced from what I already knew. My plan is to share some of my thoughts on here.

Chapter 1

"being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ" (verse 6)

We must have confidence that God will continue to work in our lives. Once He starts using us for His glory, He will continue to use us. When we accept Him as our Lord and Savior, He will bless you and continue to bless you. You may be going through some tough times right now, but have confidence that He will use it for His glory and will bless you for enduring.

"And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God." (verses 9-11)

This is my prayer for my family! I've heard of praying scripture and I want to start here. I will pray this prayer not only for each of my girls, but for Chad and other members of my family as well as my friends.

"For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain." (verse 21)

I need to remind myself of this daily. I am to live for God and not for man. It is God's standards I want to live up to, not the world's. I pray that I can say this with confidence in the face of severe persecution.

"For to you, it has been granted on behalf of Christ, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for his sake" (verse 29)

When you accept Christ into your heart, it doesn't mean that your life is going to be all roses. We are told that we are going to face persecution and endure sufferings. We should take joy in those sufferings (not that it is easy to do, however!). His Word tells us that we have been "granted"; it is a gift.

I hope to post on Chapter 2 tomorrow so check back!