Joy in the Lord is our strength!
God cares for each of us and knows the trials we face. He is compassionate and an ever present help in our day to day lives. His peace is beyond our comprehension but it is available to all of us. When we ask He answers. in this sometimes crazy world that we live in it is not always easy to turn our worries over to God but oh the peace we have when we do!
Isaiah 26:3
You will keep him in perfect peace,
Whose mind is stayed on You,
Because he trusts in You.
We build on the earthly teachings of Christ and add to our knowledge by studying the Scriptures and the deeper things of God.
Jesus, the King of the Jews, would give life to the Gentiles in the stone made without human hands. In His time on earth Jesus Christ ministered to the circumcision (Israel) giving them the truth of God in Him and the fulfillment of the promises made to them.
Romans 15:8 7 Therefore receive one another, just as Christ also received us, to the glory of God. 8 Now I say that Jesus Christ has become a servant to the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made to the fathers, 9 and that the Gentiles might glorify God for His mercy, as it is written: “For this reason I will confess to You among the Gentiles, And sing to Your name.” 10 And again he says: “Rejoice, O Gentiles, with His people!
Matthew 9:35 35 Then Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.
The application of wisdom begins with the affections of our hearts. Our affections are to begin and end with God as we dwell with Him through spiritual disciplines like prayer, fasting, generosity, and studying His Word to show ourselves approved by God (2 Timothy 2:15). As we abide in God's Word, the Holy Spirit renews our minds and changes our intentions to look more like Jesus'; then our behaviors become honorable to the Lord. First5
In her book Open Spaces, Gretel Ehrlich talks about the concept that space can heal. That space—created by stillness, calm, silence—represents sanity. Mercy, what a gift. Stillness and silence can be a fullness, rather than a void. It can allow the mind to run through its paces without any need for justification. It can let us recover—grab hold of—those parts of our self which have been so scattered, so disparate, throughout the week.
To sit still is a spiritual endeavor.
To sit still is to practice Sabbath–meaning literally, to quit.
To stop. To savor uncluttered time.
To be gentle with yourself.
And yes, to waste time with God.
The bottom line? I’m no longer chasing what I assume will fill empty spaces, in order to make me something I am not.
Replenishment begins here, “I am enough.”
Because sometimes, without even knowing it, we need times and space to decompress.
We need times and space to be at home in our own skin.
We need times and space just for puttering and futzing.
We need times and space to live quietly.
Sabbath Moments
When Joseph faced his brothers twenty years after they had betrayed him, he made an incredible proclamation. “As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result” (Genesis 50:20 NASB). The Hebrew word translated here as bring about is a construction term. God is the Master Builder. He redeemed the story of Joseph. But we wonder if he will redeem our story as well?
Yes! Deliverance won’t be painless. It may not be quick. But God will use your mess for good. You are a version of Joseph in your generation. You carry something of God within you, something noble, something holy, something the world needs. That is what God is building in you. But it will take time. That’s just how these construction projects develop. Max Lucado
Philippians 4:4-7
4 Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand. 6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. The New King James Version
The motif of maintaining joy in the midst of suffering is common in Paul’s writings.
Gentleness refers to showing consideration for one another. By displaying gentleness toward all people—believers and unbelievers alike—Christians reveal the gospel’s power to transform and reconcile.
Paul again references the Day of Christ as motivation to live in a godly manner. The early Christians lived with a sense of urgency because they believed the Lord’s return was imminent. Paul probably was aware of hardships facing the Philippians. Paul wants the believers to acknowledge their dependence on God and His provision.
The Greek word for peace used here, eirēnē, conveys a range of meanings, including well-being, prosperity, freedom from anxiety, safety from harm, and deliverance from enemies. Paul envisions God’s peace as a soldier who protects the hearts and minds of believers from anxiety, fear, and doubt. Faithlife Study Bible
In the midst of difficulties, in the midst of all situations, Christians are to rejoice. The joy of Christians is not based on agreeable circumstances, instead it is based on their relationship to God. Christians will face trouble in this world, but they should rejoice in the trials they face because they know God is using those situations to improve their character.
This noun gentleness identifies a person who manifests a calmness and fairness of spirit. A person who is gentle is willing to sacrifice his or her own personal rights to show consideration to others.
The Lord’s return could occur at any moment. Paul uses that fact to motivate the Philippians to honor God with their lives. Paul exhorts the Philippians to pray about their circumstances instead of worrying over them. Be anxious for nothing Paul uses the word to refer to worry. He prohibits the Philippians from worrying about their own problems. Instead they are to commit their problems to God in prayer, trusting that He will provide deliverance.
Paul’s choice of a military term implies that the mind is in a battle zone and needs to be “protected by a military guard.” Since the purpose of such a guard in a wartime situation is either to prevent a hostile invasion or to keep the inhabitants of a besieged city from escaping, the peace of God operates in the same way: to protect the mind from external corrupting influences and to keep the mind focused on God’s truth. The NKJV Study Bible
John 14:27 Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
James 5:7–9 Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain. You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand…
Matthew 6:25–34 “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they…
1 Timothy 2:1 Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men,
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