Tag: Philippians

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Fearless

Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ . . . not frightened in anything by your opponents (Philippians 1:27-28).

I spent the day and into the evening going back to what I wrote about yesterday. Fear. One of those phantoms that we all battle in some way, and something that Christ knew we would deal with, as he spoke of it quite often. In contrast to how fear uses us, look at those words Paul penned to the church at Philipa. What an encouragement. What a simple way to encourage us to become fearless. Think about it. If we believe God is in control, then he is in control of not only us,but also our opponents, which mean we as long as we bring Glory to him we have no need to worry about our opponents. God has that covered.

What are we afraid of?

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The Aftermath

Phew, that was a close one last night, and today half of you are excited and half of you are depressed.  I thought it might be good to take a look at how Paul dealt with things, whether good or bad.  When he wrote to the church in Phillipa he described a certain amount of contentment, of self-sufficiency, and of an ability to “make do” in any situation.

11 I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. 12 I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. 13 I can do all this through him who gives me strength. Philippians 4:11-13 New International Version (NIV)

So, as a follower of the Christ, you already have everything you need.  If you are excited or depressed about the outcome of the election, it doesn’t really matter.  The Christ has provided all we need to be successful and bring glory to God over the next four years- no matter what may come!

 

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Who’s your Leader?

Yesterday at the office, I sat through quite a long ‘leadership meeting’ where several of our senior leaders talked about leadership, their styles and experiences.  There’s a whole story for another day about why my name tag was different then some of my peers. But like I said that’s for another day.  Sorry Rex!

Anyway, there was a question submitted from the crowd asking the panel who their iconic leader was, or put another way, which leader did they try to emulate.  The answers ranged from very general to very specific, but this question made me think – who would I look at as my iconic leader.  What was interestingly is that immediately I thought about the Christ Jesus.  Which actually surprised myself a little bit, even though I try to profess that I follow him all the time. So I thought about two things, one why would I pick him.  Which was the easier question to answer.  I mean think about it, he had a vision, assembled a broad varied team, trained them, taught them by example, delegated task to them, and ultimately gave himself for them – a fantastic example of servant leadership!

The second question however, was more difficult.  If I had been on that stage, would I have given that answer, or would I been too concerned about the business ‘backlash’.   hm……

But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, Philippians 3:7-10 ESV

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Last fall my small group spent 6 weeks encouraging each other to take risks through a program called Sparkgood.  It was a very motivating time, as we watch people get out of their comfort zone for a little bit of time, attacking challenges that lay in front of them.  Some simple, some huge, but we did it.

This week the creator of that program is releasing a book about the whole idea of taking risks and pushing your self through those boundaries that we create around ourselves.

I saw this bit of artwork from his book, and I thought it was good to share.  I can’t seem to figure out how to embed Instagram photos this morning, so I just have to share the link, and the words

While we can’t be sure of how far we can go, we do know this, we we’re meant to go further then we are today.

That’s pretty true, as we keep losing ourselves and taking ourselves less seriously and break down false barriers, we will go so much farther.

15  “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky 16 as you hold firmly to the word of life Philippians 2:15-16 New International Version (NIV)

 

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80 Long

Andrew had his first junior high football game last night. He is playing wide receiver and running in the play calls, just like I did many years ago!  Watching his games has taken me back to my playing days and has brought back a few of my football memories.  However, one in particular stands out – the 80 long play.

For those who don’t know – 80 long  is when the wide receiver runs straight down the sideline – way down the sideline –  like to the end zone down the sideline, and the quarterback rolls out and throws it to him.  The intent – the long bomb for a touchdown – and the cheers of the crowd, and FOOTBALL GLORY!

So, I remember Coach Wilson calling 80 Long in my ear hole.  As I ran towards the huddle I realized that this play was coming to me!  This was MY chance at glory.

I tore off down the side line, got past the cornerback, arrived in the endzone and turned over my out side shoulder for the ball.  And there was the ball, targeted for my inside shoulder!  Oh No!  In horror I watched the ball fall aimlessly to the ground.  Which in this case what a gravel track in the corner of the end zone. And dejected I ran back to the sideline.

I never ran 80 long into the huddle again.

So, I am sure I will recall that day until I pass from this world, but I can tell you I don’t dwell on the failure.  I mean really,  we all fail at things.  Here are two things that I do think about when I think about 80 long.

If I didn’t try at all, I wouldn’t even have this lousy sad story,  although the touchdown story would have been better.  (And hey, is it not better to learn early that you really aren’t good at something?)  The lesson there – Always Try.

and secondly, failure doesn’t define you – dwelling in failure does.  That missed touchdown has no bearing on the person I am today.  I have a memory, but really, I moved on, and have had tons of success.  The lesson there- failures is a part of the process.

So, what am I trying to say today?  We all have our 80 long, but , just like Paul,  we need to leave them behind and keep straining toward what really matters.

13 Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead,  Philippians 3:13  New International Version (NIV)