When we get
stronger, others reap the benefits. Our
great and gracious God is in the business of building us and molding us to be
more like Jesus. That is God’s plan to
impact us, one at a time and for all time.
It is evident from
the beginning of time and the evidence of the Bible, Old and New Testament,
that God is for His people. Life is not
about stuff or possessions. God is pursuing
people as we talked about yesterday, and He is seeking to help others live
strong, abundant lives that connect to God and to other people.
Literally, when we
allow the work of God in us, He begins to work through us. He loves us, and He is setting us up to let
others experience His life and love.
Others are the reason.
By thinking it is
about us or by being self-centered we miss what God says is best and what will
make the biggest difference in this world.
Turn the other direction. By
thinking and acting like it is all about serving and loving others we are part
of the blessings and results of a life used by our awesome God.
Let’s begin at that
point. Allow God to make your life and
mine about other people. Paul’s letter
to the church at Philippi makes this very clear.
Philippians
1:3-11 NASB
I thank my
God in all my remembrance of you, 4 always
offering prayer with joy in my every prayer for you all, 5 in view of your participation
in the gospel from the first day until now. 6 For I am confident of this very
thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of
Christ Jesus. 7 For it is only right for me to feel this way about you all,
because I have you in my heart, since both in my imprisonment and in the
defense and confirmation of the gospel, you all are partakers of grace with me.
8 For
God is my witness, how I long for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus. 9 And
this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in real knowledge
and all discernment, 10 so
that you may approve the things that are excellent, in order to be sincere and
blameless until the day of Christ; 11 having
been filled with the fruit of righteousness which comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.
What do we learn
from what Paul wrote? I am asking God to
help me apply these and even more to my every day life.
“always
offering prayer with joy in my every prayer for you”
That’s more prayer. I do pray, but I want my heart to be bent
toward praying for others even more.
That means I think less about what I want or about my opinion.
“He
who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ”
Trusting God to
work in the lives of the people around me and even in me is what I must confess
and watch. It is not mine to measure. It is mine to praise God for what He is
doing.
“I
have you in my heart”
Who is on or in
your heart? The people you think about
the most grab your heart, fill your prayers and are part of your daily
schedule. Too often our heart is filled
with the wrong stuff. Check your
heart. Guard your heart. Make sure the right people are there.
“that
your love may abound still more”
Praying for others
is an incredible thing. What we pray
speaks to what we believe. Did you know
that we can pray for others in a selfish way?
It is true. If our prayers have
to do what I can get or what I benefit from someone, our prayers are
wrong.
“filled
with the fruit of righteousness…to the glory and praise to God”
By allowing God to
fill us lives will be changed. My life
is being changed. Others are being
changed. And it is all for the glory of
God as our lives are connecting to others.
It really is like a spider web by our lives connecting to the lives of
others. We never know who we will bless,
but we acknowledge that others are the reason.
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