Rev. Ray and Pat Amos
Philippians 4:11-12
I have learned to be content, whatever the circumstances may be. I know now how to live when things are difficult, and I know how to live when things are prosperous.” Philippians 4:11-12 (J. B. Phillips Translation)
“Learning to be Content”
He was in prison a good bit of his adult life; yet he was never a criminal. There was always pain in his body, but he kept on. Friends came and went like the clouds in the sky, but he was trusting one who ruled from higher than the heavens.
Once he wrote, “Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger in the city, in danger in the country; and in danger from friends and false believers. I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked.”
After all that, the Apostle Paul still could write that all things work together for the good of those who love God. It is not only what he said, but when he said it that makes these words so powerful. It was after the experiences above; and he still believed.
Paul knew what it was to endure hard times. He wrote of times when there were “fighting without and fears within.” (I am sure that we understand that.) Yet, he went on to write, “In all our troubles my joy overflows…God, who comforts the downcast, comforted us.”
Christians today face the temptation to become negative about many things. It is a great sin because it harms our witness and robs our joy.
Paul and Silas sang in prison after receiving a terrible beating. It must not have been the blues that they sang. The jailor wanted what they had, he wanted to know their Jesus; he wanted to sing too. Let us sing a song about Jesus:
“I danced on a Friday when the sky turned black,
It’s hard to dance with the devil on your back.
They buried my body, they thought I’d gone,
But I am the dance, and I still go on.
‘Dance then, wherever you may be,
I am the Lord of the dance,’ said he,
‘And I’ll lead you all wherever you may be,
And I’ll lead you all in the dance,’ said he.”
Bad things happen, but a good attitude is a Christian’s choice.
Grace and Peace, Rev Ray
Link to Youtube – Lord of the Dance
