Reflections from June 17, 2010

Today we finish Philippians and read in Philippians 4:6-7, "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."

I think it's very interesting to note that Paul was in prison facing a death penalty when he wrote this letter to the Philippians, and yet, he was showing contentment with his life and is situation, because he had the peace of God! He also knew that it guarded his heart and that Jesus was with him directly to do that. When you have someone like that, Jesus Christ and the Heavenly Father, covering your back, it doesn't really matter what anyone does, does it? The most interesting thing is how Paul viewed all of this. Quite possibly, he was still of enough stature in life that he could have bought his way out of prison, but he chose to remain and trust in Christ to supply his needs, and be content with that. He didn't turn his back on Christ, and we shouldn't either, irregardless of our lot in life. If we have lots of material possessions, it can be tempting to pull away from God in that we feel we don't need Him; or if we wanting in life, we can pull away because of disappointments and the feeling that God doesn't care. We must be watchful for both.

Today in Proverbs 17:22, Solomon tells us, "A merry heart does good, like medicine, But a broken spirit dries the bones."

"Laughter is good medicine." Have you ever heard that? I think that's what Solomon is telling us. I've heard too, from a pastor at Sagemont Church in Houston, that stress and strife shorten our lives. I think that's very true, and I try very hard to live a life of joy and contentment, not one that I'm anxious all the time as Paul warned about in Philippians as well. A broken spirit will cause us to just give up, not fight the fight, and so on. This attitude can lead to very disastrous results, such as broken lives, lost jobs, bad health, drinking, etc. It causes one to lose hope, and we always have hope in the Lord. Remove stress and replace it with contentment, and you will have joy which causes you to have a merry heart! QED?

Blessings to all