"I have learned the secret..." Philippians 4:11-13 I can keep a secret, but this one should definitely be shared with everyone. We are in the middle of financial woes in our country, and many folks are learning to tighten belts, do without, suffer through it. Paul was no stranger to living with plenty or poverty, and even worse, but he claims he could be content no matter what his circumstances were. I wonder how many of us could make that claim. Surely, we have much - anyone of us - to be thankful for. The fact that we're citizens of this country alone is cause for thanksgiving. But Paul's point here is that we don't have to produce contentment alone - there's a secret, a help, a rescue waiting for us: "I can do everything through Him who gives me strength!" Ph 4:11 Certainly an attitude of gratitude for what we do have is key. But sometimes we find ourselves in the depths of despair and finding gratitude doesn't seem to lift us. There is One who will, who gives us the strength to endure and even soar victoriously through our trouble. Paul knew to lean even more heavily when things got tough - he wasn't disappointed. He rejoiced!

• How are you coping with circumcstances today? Are you content or not?
• What can you find to be thankful about right now?
• In what area do you need Christ's strength?

Week 5 - Philippians 4:8-23

"Finally, sisters...." Paul brings us around to the bottom line in verses 8 & 9: Practically speaking, we control our joy! Here is what I see him saying: choose what you put your mind on, "think about such things", put it into practice. Then, "the God of peace will be with you." Joy!

I have grown into the habit of watching TV at night. As a cable subscriber, you pay plenty of money each month, so you'd think there would be something worth watching. Sadly this is not the case. In fact, most programming is not "true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent or praiseworthy!" This concerns me, as I see the flavor of entertainment really going, well, dark! And not dark chocolate, but gross and spooky dark. This to me is not lovely or excellent, but a waste - even a danger - for my mind. So, as Fat Tuesday approached, I decided to give up TV for Lent. I will choose 'excellent' activities to fill that time now. I will 'think about' what we've been learning in Philippians - pursuing a true knowledge of our Lord Jesus, and 'practicing' joy.

• How about you? There's plenty to worry about in a day, are you practicing joy? These two verses make an excellent prescription for worry. Choose, think, practice and the God of peace (ah, blessedness!) will be with you!

Now, Girls!
If you've been involved with church for any length of time, you've seen people disagree. Well, come on, people are involved with church! No different for the Philippians. Paul scolds two girls, Euodia and Syntyche, for some sort of disunity. Kind of interesting that their names mean sweet fragrance and easy to get along with! Whoops! These are good girls, it seems, hard workers for the cause of Christ. But somewhere along the line a disagreement occurred and the word got back to Paul. The remedy? Choose to agree in the Lord. The church was instructed to help them get there. We are responsible, as the Church, to help the cause of unity within the body of Christ. After all, it was Jesus who taught, "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons (daughters) of God." (Matthew 5:9) This is about reminding our fellow workers of the big picture, the grand purpose, the most excellent way. Like Paul said, "I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things." (3:8) We can give up the right to be right more easily, when we realize that it's all about Jesus.

• If you've been in a disagreement in church, how was it resolved - or was it? What did you learn from it?

I love this next little section - verses 4-7. More joy, less worry. There's a verse here everyone should know: verse 6. Got trouble? Don't worry! Take it to God, and don't forget to say 'thank You'! (This is my very rough paraphrase.) The outcome? Verse 7 - Peace. Peace that transcends understanding. Peace that guards, not only your mind, but also your heart. I'll bet Euodia and Syntyche would have loved a dose of that!

Women are notorious worriers. It's true, you know it. The last thing we would think to do in the middle of a 'situation' is to offer a prayer of thanksgiving. So, it's interesting to me that it's included in the remedy. Pondering it a bit more, if we're tuned in to what we have to be thankful for, we've tuned out - or at least, pushed to the side - the thing we're worrying about. There's the opening for peace to come in. Look at how faithful God's been in the past. Look at the good possiblities that can come out of the 'situation.' Look at Who is in charge of outcomes. One of my most favorite things about God is His sovereignty - His control over everything. I love Him for that! Why should I worry?

• What are you worried about today? Try this remedy on your knees and let us know how it turns out.

Eye on the prize!

Paul writes in verse 20 through the end of the chapter some words that thrill me! My citizenship is in heaven! Hallelujah! I've always felt a little odd here - well, no wonder! I don't really belong here, I'm just on mission. And get this: I get a glorious body someday! Whoohoo! No more calories to count! No more pimples! A good hair day every day! Actually, we can only guess what this means - "glorious body". We do know that our bodies will be like Christ's body.

• How do you think you'll look/feel when you get yours?

Paul reminds the Philippians of his great love for them and his great joy in them and then encourages them to stand firm in the Lord. Here is where we can be grateful to be participants with others in following Christ. We help each other stand firm through intercessory prayer, study blogs (!), teachings on Sunday, women's gatherings (men's gatherings too) - all these 'church' activities help. How blessed we are to have this freedom in our country! What about those underground Christians in Muslim lands or communist China or wherever? More difficult there, I'd say. It is good for all of us to know that our Holy Spirit is there helping us stand firm. God holds us jealously, unwilling to let us fail. All He needs from us is that cry that says 'I feel weak here, I need You.' God is into the rescuing business. It occurs to me that we may be in greater 'danger' than those Christians in far away lands. It may be easier to slip when you stand on the gradual slope that our culture seems to offer. Our greatest danger may be that we don't know we're in danger. The safeguard is to go back to what God says, and choose to stand firm there.

• As you travel through the Scriptures, have you found a verse that has helped you 'stand firm?'

I'll share one of mine: Romans 12:1-2. In fact, I love all of chapter 12 of Romans - I think it describes an attitude toward God and each other that shows specifically how to live according to the pattern Christ has set down for us. Hope you get a chance to read it and be blessed, too.

Week 4 - Philippians 3:17-4:7

Following his example - Paul encourages the Philippians to watch him and imitate him. This is not out of arrogance or self-confidence. Paul knows that he's following Christ's example (remember verse 10 of chapter 3?), and therefore, the example he presents to the Philippians is not of his design, but God's. How wonderful for these folks to have a living, breathing example of what a Christian looks like right in front of them! I'll bet there is someone you could name who offers you that example, as well. This is God's plan for us, our mission, if you will, while occupying earth - to be discipled and to disciple others.

• Who are you an example for? Who is your example?

There are plenty of poor examples, and this is where our reference to Christ needs to be completely clear. We need to know enough of Christ to be able to identify poor examples: Christians (or those who claim to be) who consistently deal with things as any other person might. I must confess my example to my daughters or neighbors or friends may be very similar to what a non-believer might offer them. To myself (and to you) I would say to go back and study Jesus' pattern of living; the frequency and regularity in His prayer life, His compassion, His obedience. "Shine like stars" as Paul wrote in chapter 2.

Did you like Paul's words: their god is their stomach - verse 19? Yikes! As one who enjoys food, this convicts me somewhat. I believe he's referring to their preoccupation with fleshly endeavors, which isn't exclusively food. It does cause me to stop and think about what things in my world have come to own me, and wonder if some inventory down-sizing is in order. Ah, spring cleaning!

• What areas (habits) could you name that maybe need to be eliminated?

Week 3 - Philippians 3:1-16

"I say again, 'Rejoice!'" - I think I'm beginning to get a message here! Paul says 'it is a safeguard for you (3:1).' Could rejoicing, remembering who we are in Christ and celebrating that each and every day, could that be our protection, our safety net? I think in this crazy world we're in today, it is a great defense and the perfect witness.

Paul goes on to warn the Philippians about the 'mutilators of the flesh' (3:2) referring to the Judaizers who insisted that converts to Christianity who were Gentile would be required to endure circumcision (as God required of the Jews - Genesis 17:9-10). Paul counters that circumcision is a heart matter. I think it's important to mention here that there are many versions of Christianity around us (like the Judaizers) who add their own ideas, mixing them in with the truth of God's Word. Peeling back their ideas, underneath it is either a lack of belief in the complete truth of the Scriptures - so they need alterations; or a display of pride ('we can improve it') or even plain old ignorance - that is, lack of Biblical knowledge. For me, denominations are unimportant, but teaching the Word correctly and completely is essential in a church. One can't determine if this is the sort of church we want if one doesn't know what the Bible says about life and salvation! We are the ones responsible for the truth we've received (between the covers of your Bible, not on TV or even in church on Sunday), so shame on us if we never check it out. So, here I go again - you can't study the Bible enough!

• How big a priority is Bible study in your week? What changes will you make to move it to the top of your list?

Paul recites his resume in verses 5-6. It's pretty impressive, he seems to have had it all - but he counts it all loss, worthless, rubbish, - when he compares all that human effort to knowing Christ. Philippians 3:10 is one verse I keep revisiting. Years ago, I participated in a 24-hour prayer relay during the Gulf War. It was during my time segment that this verse's address popped into my head, so I turned to it, read it and, quite honestly, didn't really get it. But I knew God wanted me to have it, to keep it and so I have continued to keep it close and He's revealing more and more of the truth of it to me. You see, I think Jesus wants us to know Him more than Paul wanted to know Him. He wants us to realize that the very best thing this life can offer us is a chance to walk in intimacy with Him, through whatever comes, experiencing everything - good or bad - in His power. Jobs, homes, even family are loss compared to this. I would encourage you to keep this verse close, memorize it, live it.

• How well would you say you 'know' Christ?

In verse 11-16, Paul explains that this is a process that requires some focus and discipline on our part - much like an athlete needs to train to win a race. Even Paul wasn't 'there' yet, nor will we be. But the journey waits for us every morning. Yesterday doesn't matter and we can't touch tomorrow. Today's the day.

• What's on your list today? How can you make this a day when you included Jesus in each item?

Chapter 2:19-30 My boy, Timothy ~ In verses 19-24 we get a little insight on Timothy, the young man that was really Paul's right-hand-man. Paul exposes some character qualities in Timothy to us that we should pause a minute to discuss. Look at verse 20. Not a casual interest. Not a passing interest. No, a genuine interest in the welfare of other Christians. Paul was so confident of Timothy's care-giving qualities that he felt Tim was the only one to adequately care for this loving group of believers. At a time when I know Paul would have liked to keep him close, he prepared to send him along to the Philippians as their new pastor.

• Are there some ways you could express or develop an interest in other Christians' welfare? In your church? Across the world?

E-paph-ro-di-tus - means charming. I think he must have been at least that. Obviously, he was trustworthy & reliable or the Philippian church wouldn't have sent him all that way with the help they offered Paul. Verse 26 describes his distress at the church's distress! It is apparent that they loved the guy, and worried when they heard he was ill. I think I'll enjoy visiting with him someday in heaven. How about you?

• Who is depending on you today? Would you describe yourself as trustworthy and reliable? How do you deal with another's distress?

It concerns me today that we leave people alone too much. I mean, here I am writing some ideas about the Scriptures on a computer - not seeing your faces or hearing your reactions. This misses the opportunity to 'be distressed' for someone else, to 'genuinely care' in a real way for another. Have we gotten too remote, too isolated? We can blame technology, I suppose, for offering us this crutch. Or should we place the blame on a culture that moves soooo fast, that we don't feel like we have time to make a real difference in someone else's life? I think it's just me. I'm the one who doesn't elevate another's concerns above my own, go the extra mile, actually pray when I promise to. Join me in looking for opportunities to show the kind of concern Timothy and Epaphroditus showed - and let us know how it goes!